


Wild Ride

by weweredancing



Category: Pentagon (Korea Band)
Genre: A Lot of Cursing/Swearing, Action/Adventure, Biker Gang AU, Gang Leader!Hongseok, Gang Leader!Hui, Humor, Jinhongseok is love, M/M, Mentions of Illegal/Underground Practices, Misunderstandings LMAO, Original Characters i.e. my babies, Romance, Violence, Wrong Place At The Wrong Time, additional tags will be added in the future, i refuse to believe that jinhongseok is dead uhu, jinhongseok is life
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-02-02
Updated: 2018-11-19
Packaged: 2019-03-12 17:12:07
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 21,954
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13551885
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/weweredancing/pseuds/weweredancing
Summary: When Jo Jinho took the early morning shift for work, he did not expect to be hurled into gang troubles and countless misunderstandings. He also did not expect to find himself constantly debating whether it was the adrenaline or the ridiculously attractive gang leader that always made his heart beat so fast he was afraid it would burst.





	1. Gun

It was a long night.

Jinho stared at the only streetlight that was on next to the convenience store where he worked. There were bugs gathering under the light, sporadic and fleeting. The light had been blinking on and off since he started his shift and since then: fifty-seven blinks and three customers. It didn’t help that he was in the less populated part of the town— well, you couldn’t even call it a town. It was more like the space connecting the two towns. If you go down the road there would be nothing but fast food diners, gas stations, more convenience stores and maybe antique stores selling records and books. Nothing but fleeting moments.

Jinho sighed and laid his head on the counter, humming to the music playing from the very low quality speakers in the store. The only thing he liked about his shift for this time slot was that he had full control over the playlist. He had jazz, old r & b, dated pop hits, soft ballads, loose hip hop and a bit of rock in his playlist and right now, one of his favorite ballads was playing. He lifted his head and stole a glance outside and was not surprised that the streets were still empty. Nobody was going to be out for sure because it was _3am_ in the early morning.

He nestled his head on his arms and prepared himself to take a short nap, maybe catch a few winks before fixing the shelves. It was cold inside the store and the speakers were playing an even softer ballad. It was perfect.

He was closing his eyes, about to drift into a dangerously deep sleep when the roar of bikes jolted him awake. He looked outside quickly and saw four headlights glowing in the parking lot. He narrowed his eyes, fixed his uniform and prepared himself for the customers. He was angry for being interrupted but welcomed human interaction nonetheless. It was getting a bit lonely.

He sat up straight and watched as the four figures walked in a close formation towards the store. It looked like they were in a heated discussion. They approached and came into the light and Jinho would be lying if he didn’t say he was beginning to grow nervous. The bikers were in jackets, ripped jeans and boots. They seem like those notorious ‘biker gangs’ he had heard so much about from the town next to where he lived. He heard the gangs weren’t really that violent as he thought they would be so he had no reason to worry. Well, he _hoped_ he had no reason to worry.

The sliding door to the store opened and wind rushed in accompanied with the noise from the new group.

“Hyung, I really don’t think it was him! Hui-hyung would’ve—“

“Come on, Kino! Just because you have history with Lee Hwitaek doesn’t mean you can go easy on him! It’s not like he’s the same guy he was before when you met him! He _tried_ to kill us!”

“Don’t be too dramatic, Shinwon-hyung. He didn’t ‘try to kill us’—“

“Alright, quit it. Let’s discuss this tomorrow. For now, let’s go buy food. I’m beat.” The one that seemed to be leading the group glanced at Jinho, who was trying very hard to be occupied with the cash register, and moved towards the second aisle.

Jinho tinkered with the receipts, and tried to calm his shaking fingers. _‘Kill’? What was going on?_ Jinho studied the group again from the corner of his eyes and found some indications that they seem to be under a great deal of stress. The guy with the denim jacket that had a violet wine bottle patch on it was running his hands through this hair and kept on sighing as he lazily surveyed the ramyeon aisle. The quiet guy beside him kept massaging his temples and shaking his head.

“Good evening— I mean, morning.” The violet wine bottle patch guy greeted as he walked up the counter with a lot of ramyeon packs. Jinho smiled and muttered a shaky greeting in reply.

“Yuto, can you check if Shinwon-hyung got some chips? I’m really in the mood for some.” The wine bottle patch guy turned to the quiet guy. The quiet guy, ‘Yuto’ nodded and walked down to the aisle where the guy with glaring red hair was. Wine bottle patch guy then turned back to Jinho with an outsretched hand while saying, “Hi, my name’s Kino. Nice to meet you.”

Jinho was shocked at the sudden introduction. I mean, he really didn’t expect them to start a conversation with him, much more to introduce themselves to him but I guess the guy was looking for distraction too. Like Jinho. Maybe they all were.

“Yeah, hey. I’m Jinho. Nice to meet you too.” He shook Kino’s hand and offered a warm smile. A beat passed and Kino launched into a conversation about the music that was playing. He expressed his admiration for the artist and Jinho responded in enthusiasm as he recounted details about accidentally being in the area where the artist’s concert was and how he attended it spontaneously. Kino showed his jealously and started talking about the artist’s song style which prompted them into a discussion on the unique style of the artist.

Kino was an engaging guy, charismatic and comfortable to be with. Jinho didn’t expect that one of them would be this friendly. Several minutes passed by and they were still talking. They were in the middle of talking about ice cream when the other two came to the counter.

“Kino, I’m not surprised you already got this guy to invite you over to his house for dinner to meet his family.” The guy with the blazing red hair interjected and nudged Kino away from the counter to drop a handful bag of chips in front of the register. The counter was too full that one ramyeon pack almost fell but Jinho caught it in time before it could.

“Hyung!” Kino went red as he glared at the guy with the red hair. The red-haired guy just chuckled and turned to Jinho while chucking a thumb at Kino.

“I’m sorry if this guy came on too strong. He’s quite a charmer, you see. Almost got this guy to give him his expensive new car after the guy hit the side of his bike—“

“You’re exaggerating!”

“—Well, _clearly_ I am but I mean… I know he doesn’t intend to do it but this kid can be quite dangerous at times—“

“Enough, Shinwon. If you don’t stop, Kino’s gonna sulk for the next few days again.” The guy with the leather jacket finally approached the counter with some bottles of cola and beer. It was clear to Jinho that this leather jacket-clad guy had some authoritative power over the other three men because both Kino and ‘Shinwon’ stopped talking and made way for him to approach the counter. The leather jacket guy stacked the chips and ramyeon properly in order to make space for the bottles. At least he had the decency to organize the mess that was beginning to swallow the counter.

Jinho looked up at the man, accidently meeting his brown eyes and quickly averted his eyes. _Too intense._ Swallowing nervously, he asked, “Will this be all?”

The guy with the leather jacket stared at Jinho with an unreadable expression. Jinho looked up at him and then looked away again. He couldn’t handle the way the guy was looking at him. His eyes were like fire, burning and dangerous.

“Well,” the man started as he rolled out the last consonant, “that depends whether you’re available or not, sweetheart.” All Jinho could do was gape at the man as he felt blood rush to his cheeks.  

There was an internal battle happening inside Jinho’s mind. He wasn’t uncomfortable just slightly shocked as a part of he felt an odd sense of nostalgia from his younger days. Although Jinho, dare he say it, found the man rather attractive and found the situation strangely hot, reverting to his past self wasn’t really what he wanted. He wasn’t the same person as he was before. He wasn’t. He really wasn’t—

“Oh, shit! Hyung, goons at one o’clock!” Shinwon exclaimed and pointed at the new cars that just parked on the other side of the parking lot. There were two red cars and about four men in black suits and ear pieces. They were heading towards the store at a quick pace.

“Crap! We got tailed. Just when I told the guys to head home first. Yuto, can you spot our bikes?” The leather jacket man said in a low tone as he reached inside his pocket for his wallet.

“Yes, hyung. It seems like they haven’t seen our bikes since they parked at the other side of the lot.” It was the first time Jinho heard Yuto talk and discovered his deep voice.

“Hah! Idiots! Of course they wouldn’t be able to see our bikes. They’re wearing sunglasses for fucks sakes. I mean it’s still dark!” Shinwon said, appearing more calm than before after seeing the men in suits stop their advance to discuss something.

“Who even wears sunglasses at this time?” Jinho couldn’t help but add. Jinho had no idea what was going on but he was surprised he wasn’t scared. In fact, he _savored_ the fast beating of his heart against his ribcage and the sweat gathering in his hands. Adrenaline. He caught himself just before he could grin. That’s when he realized that he missed _these_ kinds of dangerous situations.

“Exactly! They’ve got no sense, I’d say!” Shinwon gestured at the men who, after a beat, began charging towards the store.

“Oh, man! They saw us! I told you your red hair was too conspicuous, hyung! Wait—why the hell are we still standing here?” Kino said in a loud voice as he stared at the men in suits with wide eyes.

“Well, we have to pay don’t we? Fuck, where’s my hundred?” The man in the leather jacket was still rummaging through his wallet, more calm than the other three. Jinho felt the urge to face-palm but stopped himself.

“Hyung, I know you still have your values intact and all but please hurry up!” Shinwon turned to the man who was still looking through his wallet.

“Hyung, they’re closing in!”

“Oh shit, Hiro Takada’s among them!”

“That asshole?”

“Aren’t they all assholes?”

“You’ve got a point there.”

All the time, Jinho was burning holes at the wallet. He could still feel his heart beating fast, the pounding resounding in his ears. The whole time the other three were talking the leather jacket man had been silent, calmly sifting through each bill for the perfect hundred. Finally after a few more incessant “hyungs”, he pulled a hundred bill from his wallet and presented it to Jinho while saying that he could keep the change. After Jinho accepted the bill, the other three began to hurriedly take the food into their arms.

“Where do we pass? If we get out through the entrance we’ll confront them for sure! And I don't want that cause I lost my fucking gun back at the bar!” Shinwon said while staring at the men fast approaching. Jinho could see them clearly now, every line of their faces and the details of their suits.

“Kino lost his too. Fuck. Let's keep it safe for tonight. I think we should pass through the back door and then pray to god they don’t see us as we circle towards our bikes.” The man in the leather jacket said and turned towards Jinho. “Is there a back door—“

“Hyung they confirmed that it’s us! They’re running!”

“Holy crapnoodles!”

“Ew! What kind of creative bullshitting is that?”

Jinho stared into the leather jacket man’s eyes one last time, swallowed, and prayed that he wouldn’t regret what he was about to do in the morning. “Yes. Follow me.”

Jinho moved away from the counter with the bikers close behind him. He approached the back door and turned to the leather jacket man while saying, “It’s here. Just go straight. In order to go back to the parking lot through the other side just turn to your left and then right, after you see the area for the garbage bins.”

The man in the leather jacket stared at him again with the same intensity as he had back at the counter. He was about to open his mouth to say something when Jinho heard the distinct sound of the entrance door opening, letting in a rush of air and the rustling of suits.  

“I know you’re in here, you filthy gangsters!” The gruff voice echoed around the store. This prompted Jinho to hastily open the door and gesture for the bikers to escape fast. The leather jacket man, stared at him one last time and said, “Thank you.” Yuto went out nodding to Jinho, then Shinwon who winked at Jinho and lastly Kino who said his gratuities accompanied with a quick hug which took Jinho by surprise. An awkward wave from Jinho and then they were gone from his sight.

"Yang Hongseok!" The gruff voice shouted again. 'Yang Hongseok'?

Jinho closed the door silently and peeked behind the shelf that covered the back door. It was these times that Jinho was grateful for his height. He saw four men in suits holding guns and talking through ear pieces. He still wanted to know what the hell was going on but he knows the answer will never come. He debated whether to show himself or not, to wait it out and see if they would leave but a part of Jinho, _that_ part of Jinho, basked at the adrenaline that was currently pulsing through his veins. This was dangerous, it would be dangerous. He knows this and yet he found himself stepping out from behind the shelves, adrenaline coursing through his veins and the fast pounding of his heart a steady rhythm.

“Um, hello there. I would like to ask you to leave. This establishment does not allow firearms and the wearing of sunglass—“

“Grab him!”

Jinho got the wind knocked out of him as one of the men landed a blow to his stomach. Jinho fell to down to his knees and touched the part of his stomach that stung. He was breathing heavily, his vision darkening at the sides as two of the men hooked their arms below his shoulders and dragged him up to the biggest and scariest one of them all. Jinho was still breathing heavily as he was forced to look up with a finger beneath his chin.

“Are you an accomplice?” The man grunted and squeezed Jinho’s chin, forcing him to answer. Jinho couldn’t even breathe and the guy expected him to talk? _Bullshit_.

“Where did you hide them? Where the fuck are they?” The man demanded in a louder and harsher tone. Jinho refused to speak and averted his eyes. It was a wrong move, he admits, since the next thing Jinho knew, he was on his knees again, breathing more heavily than before. The two goons tightened their hold on his arms and the man in front of him kneeled to his level, this time he was holding his gun in front of him in a threatening manner. Jinho couldn’t help but steal a glance at the gun. Adrenaline was still pumping through his veins, the sick excitement he felt in this dangerous situation was enough to keep him from blacking out.

“This will be the last time, _boy_.”

Jinho stopped moving, stopped breathing and stopped blinking as he felt the cool metal touch the side of his head. His heart was beating so fast he was afraid it would burst. The cool touch of the gun, the beating of his heart echoing in his ears, the minuscule twitch of his fingers, the sweat rolling down his face— he was hyper-actively aware of these things that his senses began to overlap. He can see the beating of his heart, hear the sweat dripping down his face and smell the cool metal of the gun.

With his senses in a haywire, he could barely make out what the man was saying. Snitches of “where” and “gangsters” slipped into his ears and danced around his mind. He was losing consciousness, his vision blurring as colors lost warmth and edges lost sharpness. He was about to slip into darkness when the noise surrounding him became louder.

Then, it was complete pandemonium.

Shouts, bodies thrown against each other, gun shots, cursing, blood. Whose blood? His blood? He could barely register the fact that someone was carrying him out of the store. He could barely take in the harsh commands and the rushed movements as he was forced to straddle the cool seat of a motorbike with arms around him as they drove away from the store.

He could barely digest the last words he heard before losing consciousness.

“Don’t die on me, you idiot.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! So I've had this idea in my mind for a long time and I decided that it was finally time to stop JUST thinking and actually start writing. 
> 
> First, I would like to add a disclaimer that I don't know much about biker gangs and so the structure or however biker gangs work in this fic is NOT a reflection of how the biker gangs we have in real life work. Just the concept of it is presented in this fic. So whatever is stated IN THIS FIC about them is entirely of my own creation and perception. :) There will be mentions of illegal substances and practices, minor violence, and swearing (and although the mentions are kinda mild and not as graphic as you think it is) so I suggest that if these things make you uncomfortable it would be better for you to stop here. Also, I was going for a sort of dark vibe for this fic so I hope it turned out like I wanted it to be though I couldn't help my humor seeping into the story. I'll try to create a comfortable blend of humor and the danger vibe. Although I have an outline for the plot, I'm writing this story by going with ~the flow of things~ so updates might not be consistent BUT I promise every update will make-up for the time (at least, I will try to compensate for the time gaps-- BUT NO I SHALL MAKE IT SO). 
> 
> So here it is and I hope you enjoy!  
> \- Nana


	2. Blacklist

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jinho wakes up to worrisome news.

Jinho awoke to a throbbing headache and with an overwhelming urge to puke.

“Boss, he’s awake!”

Jinho looked at the familiar red-haired guy who was standing beside his bed, peering over him. Jinho had to cover his ears when he yelled because his head won’t stop hurting. His throat felt dry like he just swallowed a bucket of sand. He needed water but as Jinho was about to ask for water, he felt the bile start to rise.

“Puke.” He whispered as he hurriedly grabbed a hold of Shinwon’s leather jacket. The man raised his eyebrows and bent his head down to hear better.

“Puke.” Jinho whispered again fighting back the bile as best as he can. He doesn’t like the feeling of throwing up even though he went drinking a lot during his high school days. In retrospect, going out to drink almost everyday wasn’t very fun at all.

“Oh, Luke? Sorry, that’s not my name although that’s a very cool—“

Shinwon wasn’t given the chance to even step away from Jinho as Jinho twisted his body to the side to expel the contents of his stomach on Shinwon’s brown leather boots. He heaved some more while the redhead was left speechless, frozen to the spot.

“Shinwon, how is he…” Hongseok arrived only to see Shinwon white as a sheet while the convenience store worker was puking beside the bed. _Uh-oh, anything but Shinwon’s boots,_ Hongseok thought as Shinwon turned to him robotically with wide disbelieving eyes.

Jinho looked up after spitting some contents left in his mouth to find the leather-jacket man calling for someone to come over to take Shinwon away. Seconds later and some buff dude went up to them to drag Shinwon, who was still unmoving, to another room. The leather-jacket man thanked the buff dude and approached Jinho warily, as if he still wasn’t done emptying his stomach on the boots of bike gangsters. As he drew closer, Jinho saw that he was holding a plate with a sandwhich on it and a glass of water.

“Hey, how’re you feeling?” The man asked Jinho as he set the plate on his bed and handed him the glass of water. Jinho slowly sat up and took the glass. The leather jacket man reached into the pocket of his jacket and pulled out some medicine.

Jinho gulped down the water hastily that he almost choked. The leather jacket man handed him medicine and sat down beside his makeshift bed.

“Here, eat this. Kino made it for you.” The man gestured to the sandwich and Jinho nodded, taking the sandwich with shaky fingers. He still doesn’t have the complete idea as to what happened last night and as to why he was here in this unknown building with the bike gangsters he helped last night. He was down to the last few bites before he almost slapped himself for being so bad mannered.

Turning to the leather jacket man who was looking at him with the same intense and unreadable expression as before, he said, “Thank you.”

The man in turn smiled and Jinho felt himself blush. He wanted to slap himself again. _Why did he blush?_

“No problem.” The man placed the glass on top of the plate. He then turned around, called another dude and handed the plate to him.

Jinho fiddled with the covers on his bed. “No, I mean… thank you for rescuing me,” he laughed, “Although it was kind of your fault I got into that mess in the first place.” He meant it jokingly but it seemed that the man was really guilty as Jinho saw him scratch the back of his neck and look away.

“Yeah… sorry about that. It was kind of our fault that they got to the store in the first place. I’m really sorry.”

“Ah- no, it’s okay. You don’t have to apologize. You had no control of the situation anyhow…” Jinho was flustered at the wild apology that had appeared in the conversation. He really did not expect this kindness from gangsters. It just goes to show that maybe, Jinho didn’t know anything at all about them. It was his fault for judging them. Before he can reassure him that it wasn’t their fault, Jinho realized that he never got this person’s name.

“I’m sorry but I don’t know what to call you. I’ve been referring to you as ‘the leather-jacket man’ in my head all this time.”

The man before him seemed delighted for some reason. “Oh, so you’ve been thinking about me? Well, you can just call me Insanely Attractive Leader of—“

“Please.”

“Okay, sorry,” The man chuckled and stretched out his hand. “My name’s Hongseok. I’m the leader of this entire, um, _group_ , _band, gang_ , whatever you want to call it. Nice to officially meet you, Jinho.”

Somehow, Hongseok knew his name. He doesn’t recall telling him anything. Jinho stared at his outstretched hand and gingerly shook it. It was warm. “Yeah. Nice to meet you,” Jinho cleared his throat. “How did you know my name?”

Hongseok gave him a dazzling smile. “Kino told me.” Oh, right. He told Kino.

“Ah, right.”

Hongseok gave a low chuckle. He was about to say something when someone barged into the room. Both Hongseok and Jinho turned to the newcomer. It was a rather short boy, about Jinho’s height or maybe _shorter_ with messy ginger curls. He was wearing those large, industrial goggles that took up most of his slim face.

“Sorry for interrupting, boss.” The newcomer turned to Hongseok and took off his goggles, perching them on top of his forehead. Hongseok waved his hand in a ‘no-big-deal’ fashion.

“What do you have for us, Caleb?” Hongseok inquired as he rested his arm on Jinho’s bed, softly brushing against Jinho’s blanket covered thigh. Jinho stopped breathing for a miniscule second.

Caleb looked down at some device that looked like a phone but with metal things jutting out from the sides. Jinho was intrigued. “The bug we planted inside Takada’s car was short-lived because some asshole figured out where it was though I made sure it was super inconspicuous, I mean I designed it to be smaller than the shape of your fingernail, boss, yes— specifically yours. I apologize. I’ll make modifications right aw—“

“Caleb, it’s all right. I appreciate your efforts. So, what did we get from the bug?” Hongseok stopped Caleb in mid-breakdown. Caleb took a deep breath and readjusted his grip on his phone-device.

“Thank you, sir. I wasn’t able to get any useful information on their movements and plans but I did hear something about him.” Caleb pointed at Jinho. Jinho pointed to himself in question. “Yes you, Mr. Jo Jinho. Takada and his men think you’re affiliated with us and have already placed you on their blacklist, of course along with all of us here.” Hongseok cursed under his breath.

Caleb turned to Hongseok. “Sir, I don’t think it’s safe for Mr. Jo Jinho to go back.”

“I don’t think so either,” Hongseok clasped his hands together and looked up at the ceiling, seemingly in thought. “Caleb, call everyone to the assembly room.”

Caleb left with a salute and closed the door behind him. Jinho was in shock. He was in a bigger situation that he thought. He was concerned about the safety of his mom, his grandparents, his friends, his future—what was he supposed to do now?

Jinho didn’t realize he wasn’t breathing until Hongseok cupped his face to force him to look at him. “Breathe, Jinho, breathe. Stay with me.” Jinho nodded through unshed tears and forced his lungs to breathe. Breathe in Hongseok’s scent, breathe in the situation. He has to get his head on straight but Hongseok was still talking. He tried to focus on Hongseok words. “—I’m so sorry we got you into this mess. We’ll do our best to get you out of this, just hold on. Breathe, you got this.”

The worry and reassurance in Hongseok’s tone brought him back to reality and he felt his ears pop. He was aware of the warmth of Hongseok’s hands and the subdued sound of the rain failing outside. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes just to clear his head, “Thank you.”

Hongseok nodded grimly and softly caressed Jinho’s cheek with his thumbs. Jinho wasn’t sure if he was imagining it but whether it was real or a figment of his fantasies, he welcomed it.

A few minutes passed until Jinho felt himself calm down.

“Are you okay with walking already? I called a meeting so we can discuss this _situation_ as a group.”

Jinho was confused. “But isn’t this the assembly room?”

Hongseok chuckled. “Ah, this is actually my room.”

Jinho couldn’t help it and blushed again, flustered and strangely flattered. “Oh, I see. Yeah, I think I can walk now.”

“I’ll help you. Don’t worry. Here, grab my arm.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First of all this chapter is dedicated to: drkstangl, jellyfishdream, and mochitam [thank u for commenting you guys inspired me to continue this uwu ily] 
> 
> Hello so I'm back. I apologize for the delay. Life happened and I couldn't control it. But I'm fine now so yay we have a new chapter and yes I know I left the chapter at a weird part again but don't worry! I can finally get back to writing cuz it's summer timeee. This chapter is a bit rough im sorry. Also, I refuse to believe Jinhongseok is dead because IT'S NOT i still love them and so here I am, continuing my work to keep myself alive during these [temporary, i believe] troubled times. Also, the jinhongseok moments are just small teasers but i cant help but blush everytime i write them. and we're getting to the juicy parts so i ask for your patience. [and isn't Caleb such a cutieee? ahh]
> 
> I hope you like it. drop a comment if u want to talk or smth hahah


	3. Fire

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things get more real. And heated.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [7.2.18] edited: changed "hyunggu" to kino. i keep calling kino 'hyunggu' oops the writer leaked into the story uhu. 
> 
> hello. I think i went off. 3k+ words y'all... I'm shooketh. Maybe I was guilty about the short chapter the last time. haha Anyway, yay the plot is moving!
> 
> Also, this is my first fanfic so I have to warn you about the inconsistencies in my writing. I'll improve, I promise. Oh and I was just so excited to post this chapter that I couldn't really check for mistakes. Sorry hhuhu 
> 
> and man, can we talk about the new magazine ho??? urgh our boy jinho so talented. anyway,,,
> 
> enjoy!!

It turns out that the ‘assembly room’ is just their term for the living room. The room was abuzz with chatter as men and women all sporting a black bandana somewhere on their body talked and mingled. There were armchairs, bean bags and loveseats scattered around the room and for some reason no one was sitting down on them.

“You go stay with Kino. I have some matters to take care of first.” Hongseok patted his shoulder and went deeper into the room. When the members saw him, they all stopped talking. The room was as silent as the night as everyone watched Hongseok move towards Caleb. The only movement in the room were the nods and two-finger salutes directed at Hongseok.

Jinho felt awkward and alone in the sea of gangsters and hurriedly looked around for Kino. He saw him with Shinwon and Yuto, standing by the TV and gingerly smiled at their direction. Kino brightened up and started walking his way.

“Hyung, how are you? Are you okay? I was so worried.” Kino came in for a hug and Jinho hugged him back, glad for Kino’s comforting presence.

“Yeah, I’m fine. I drank some medicine and ate the sandwich you made. Thank you.” He said while smiling. He already loved Kino like a brother.

“It was no big deal! I’m so glad you weren’t  _severely_   injured or anything. I take it you don’t remember what happened last night?” Kino said with his eyebrows furrowed in concern. At the mention of the being severely injured, Jinho unconsciously swallowed. What kind of injuries do these gangsters usually get that discussing life-threatening pain was a normal thing to do?

“I don’t remember anything and now troubling news came in. I’m really freaking out.” Jinho confided.

“I heard the news from Caleb. Hongseok-hyung will probably be discussing that bit in a while.” Kino said solemnly as they both watched Yuto and Shinwon approach them. It was the first time Jinho saw Kino looking grim.

“Why, hello there. My boots are just fine, thanks for asking.” Shinwon said as he appeared behind Kino in all his red-haired glory.

Jinho winced. “I’m really sorry. I was so dizzy I couldn’t even—“

“Relax, man. I was kidding. You gotta laugh more. Live a little. All that jazz. Anyway, I have more boots as fabulous as those.” Shinwon clasped his shoulder as Jinho sighed in relief.

“But those were my favorite pairs though so that kinda hurt.” Shinwon added as an afterthought and Jinho felt guilty again.

“Hyung, stop bullying him.” Yuto finally spoke up. Kino voiced his agreement. Shinwon just raised his hands in surrender and backed away.

“T-thanks. By the way, why isn’t anyone sitting on the couches? I mean, they’re there for a reason, right?” Jinho asked, motioning to the still empty couches. No one was sitting on them and it bothered him. Is it like a gang thing?

“Everyone here respects the boss a lot so no one wants to be the first to take their seats. We all sit down once the boss does.” Shinwon explained as if it was written in stone somewhere. Which it probably was.

That fact alone made Jinho’s stomach turn. It made his situation seem even  _more_  real if that was even possible. He was really stuck here, in a room full of dangerous gangsters who have surely done something illegal at least once in their lives, unable to return home because he was being targeted by an even more dangerous gang who thought he was an accomplice. All because he made the mistake of choosing the early morning shift for work. Jinho cursed his luck.

The room suddenly became alive as sounds of mass movement reached Jinho’s ears. He quickly looked up from staring at his shoes to see the members begin to take their seats. Kino went to get chairs for the four of them as Jinho searched for Hongseok.

He was sitting on a bean bag on the right and Jinho would’ve thought he was an ordinary member if not for the fact that all the people in the room were positioned facing in his direction. All eyes were on him as he wriggled around to get comfy, patting the sides of the bean bag to curve in a specific direction.

Jinho didn’t realize that he was the only one standing until he caught Hongseok’s warm gaze. He saw him smile and he felt his cheeks go warm. Someone coughed, another cleared his throat and Kino clasped his forearm to tug him down.

Flaming, Jinho turned to him and said, “Thanks.”

“No problemo. It was getting really awkward. I had to save you.”

“Thank god you did.” They both giggled and abruptly shut up when someone cleared their throat again and the room was quiet once again.

Hongseok stopped staring at their direction and stood up. People were motioning to stand up but Hongseok held out an arm and people began to relax in their seats again.

“So, you all probably heard what happened last night.” Hongseok said, voice booming. He was in control, charismatic, his presence commanding everyone to pay attention to him. Everyone was under his spell and Jinho was no exception.

“A quick rundown for all those who  _don’t_  know. Yes, I’m looking at you, Joe.” Laughter rang out. “So last night at Big Grizzly—“

“A bar.” Kino whispered. Jinho nooded, thankful.

“— we were ambushed. Unknown men, all in black,  _wearing caps_.” Murmurs sprang up and Jinho saw Kino clench his fist.

“We fled to a convenience store where Takada and his men chased us down and ended up bringing more than just ramyeon packs and colas back here.” Hongseok was intensely staring at him again. Jinho was very aware of the fact that all eyes turned towards him and he swallowed.

“As of right now, we still don’t know who exactly ambushed us. We speculate it was Lee Hwitaek, caps and all, but we can’t be too sure.” This time, Kino clenched his jaw.

Hongseok sighed and reached behind him while taking a seat. That gesture seemed to have frozen everyone in the room. A silence fell on the room but it was the suffocating kind of silence with dark undertones and prickly energy. For the first time, everyone looked anywhere but at Hongseok.

It took a moment for Jinho to realize that Hongseok was pulling out a gun. A sleek, black, and shiny gun. Jinho’s eyes widened and he stole a glance at Shinwon. Shinwon was pursing his lips with a solemn look on his face. What was going on?

Jinho heard a sigh and saw Hongseok lean back while cranking his gun. The sound filled the room and nailed everyone to their spots.

“Hae In, Minsung, Honda.” Jinho saw three men move forward and felt his heart race. Hongseok looked at the three of them with a steely gaze. He was bending forward, his elbows on each knee with the gun in his right hand, pointing upwards. It was such a raw display of power it thickened the heavy silence. It was tense. Too tense, it's the kind that burns right through you and like metal claws moving in a snake-like manner, it slithers around your body, entrapping you and at the same time anchoring you to the ground.

Hongseok, at that moment, didn’t look like your normal, good-looking guy in a leather jacket trying to be cool—which Jinho was stupid enough to believe he was. His threats were real, the shadows on his face twisting him to look like the gangster he truly was.

“Where were the three of you that night? I recall giving the three of you specific instructions to be on the look-out and to alert us if anything seemed suspicious.” Hongseok wasn’t even looking at them at this point and was caressing his gun with such care and finesse. That gesture would come off as casual if not for the look in his eyes. It screamed ‘DANGER’ in big bold red letters and Jinho had to heave a huge breathe, not realizing that he was holding his breathe the entire time.

“It didn’t occur to you that a group of unknown  _armed_  men suddenly entering a bar we are known to frequent would be  _suspicious_?” Hongseok’s voice lowered and the shadows around his face darkened. “ _Bullshit!_ ” Hongseok yelled with a ferocity so strong Jinho visibly cowered.

_Bang, bang, bang!_

Jinho was as still as a statue as three gunshots reverberated around the room. A few audible exhales and sighs were heard. Jinho looked and saw that there were three holes on the ground near their feet. No blood, no cries of pain. Jinho exhaled in relief.

“One more  _fucking_  slip-up and I’ll make sure to  _not_  miss.” Hongseok’s gaze sharpened and his mouth twisted in a cruel manner that made Jinho’s toes curl. The warning was evident in his voice and he turned away from the three men to address the entire room.

“This serves as a warning to all of you here. We almost lost men tonight and now we have an innocent bystander in our hands. I’m making Jo Jinho’s safety a top priority until this whole mess settles the fuck down.” Even though he was still shaken, Jinho felt a spark of anger course through his veins. He didn’t want to be painted as weak. He wasn’t weak. Jinho looked away and clenched his jaw.

“This is weakness and incompetence that I will not claim. We cannot afford to make  _goddamn_ mistakes. Am I clear?” Jinho saw the three men look down. This whole display was a warning and an effective one at that as the men and women all shouted a clear affirmative, though it seemed that they weren’t as shaken at the ordeal as Jinho.

“Is this… normal?” Jinho whispered to no one in particular.

“It’s usually more brutal, actually. I think the boss didn’t want to scare you that much so he took it down a notch this time.” Shinwon answered. Jinho wasn’t really scared. Things like these happened back when he was in high school. It’s just been a while since he had to experience this kind of situation. He was more shocked at the duality of their boss and more concerned at the wake-up call that ordeal served.

 _Get a grip, Jinho_.  _You can’t be the ‘damsel in distress’ that the people here are making you out to be,_  he reminded himself.

“Now, Caleb. I want you and your team to figure this fucking thing out. Who ambushed us? What does Takada want? Give me all the information you can find on this situation.” The three men were gone and it was just Hongseok again.

Gone was the gun from his hands and the shadows made way for the light to soften the lines of his face. The room seemed to brighten up again and Hongseok was back to his boyish and charming self.

“We’re moving out tomorrow morning. We head east, finish some deals, and settle once again. For sure, Takada already knows this place so we’ll have to make a quick exit.” Hongseok stood up and rubbed his hands together. This man is crazy, Jinho deduced.

“Alright. Dismissed.” Everyone waited for Hongseok to leave the room before they all stood up. They were murmuring, whispering, nodding towards Jinho. It was a blur of movement as they all began leaving the room.

Kino tapped Jinho’s shoulder and signaled to wait for him. Jinho nodded and Kino went up the stairs. Lost, Jinho looked around and spotted a tall figure in a leather jacket escape outside. Jinho looked down in thought and with finality and purpose, moved towards the door. He kept telling himself that the man was crazy but here he was, following that man outside.  

He saw Hongseok sitting on the steps, leaning against the stone railing of the stairs and watched as he took a long drag from his cigarette and blowed. It was a nice night out. Not too hot, not too cold. The moon was high and bright.

"How long are you going to stand there?" Came his drawl as he took another drag and blew smoke up to the night sky.

Jinho sighed and approached the gangster with caution, still unsure of everything. Sure the guy is helpful and attractive, but Jinho doesn't want to let his guard down. After all, he doesn't know the true nature of this guy. One minute, he's all chuckles and smirks and then he turns all stoic and angry the next. Crazy.

He stopped right beside him and sat down, leaning against the railing opposite Hongseok. Now they're beside each other, leaning onto the railings, away from each other.

“I’m not weak.” Jinho announced into the night and looked at Hongseok.

Hongseok met him with a raised eyebrow and an annoying shrug.  _This fucker_. Jinho narrowed his eyes.

"Got any more of that?" Jinho jerked his chin, motioning to the cigarette. It was a wasteful effort, to convince this psycho that he wasn’t weak. If he can’t use words, he’ll show it through actions.

Hongseok lifted an eyebrow. "You smoke? You don't seem like the type."

Jinho shrugged. "I used to. In high school. Things were rough then and I was a totally different person. I smoked, dranked, fought," he looked at Hongseok and smirked. "There are a lot of things you don't know about me."

Hongseok scoffed. Mockingly? With awe? Jinho wasn't sure. "What happened, then? Some life-changing event, I suppose?"

"Well, wouldn't you want to know?"

"I do. " There was an intensity, a fire burning in Hongseok's eye as he stared right through Jinho. Jinho couldn't breathe, couldn't look away. It was like playing with fire, painful to the touch but oh so addictive, so enticing, you just couldn't help but play the game.

"Here." Just like that, the electricity sparked and seeped into the air around them.

Jinho caught himself just in time to catch the cigarette that Hongseok tossed to him. He held it, reveling in the ghost of what was. The feeling of the cigarette between his fingertips, images of empty alleys, boys inhaling the smoke of another in a strange feeling of camaraderie.

Hongseok shifted. Jinho stared at him again and slowly placed the vice in his mouth. Hongseok moved closer until their shoulders and knees were touching. Jinho felt Hongseok’s breath on his skin as he ducked his head and angled it towards Jinho's. In a moment of pure instinct, pure energy, pure electricity, Jinho met him.

They were so close, Jinho could see Hongseoks long eyelashes, the creases of his eyelids, the turn of his nose, the sweet curve of his plump lips. They were connected, in a sense. Their cigarette butts touched, as the fire from Hongseok's bore flames into Jinho's.

It was fire, they were fire- burning in the night.

It went on for too long, Jinho thought. There was an extra beat, and extra trip to the fall. Strike one.

It seemed like an eternity before they pulled away, cigarettes all lit up. Hongseok leaned back again but this time stayed where he was. Instead of the railing, he pushed himself up with his elbows while placing them on a higher step of the stairs. Jinho lingered in the moment for a few seconds and then looked up at the stars.

They both took a drag and spoke of smoke and unlit fires to the moon.

"So, tell me." Hongseok broke the silence first.

"Tell you what?"

"What I want to know."

Jinho took a longer and heavier drag.

"Well, back in high school I was sort of a troublemaker, you could say. Joined a local gang and even though I wasn't that good at fighting, found myself standing beside the gang leader."

"Wow." A snort. “ _Really?_ ”

"Oh, shut up. You don’t believe me? Fine."

"Okay, okay. Jeez." Hongseok returned to his chuckling. “You’re so touchy.” Jinho had to stop himself from shouting in frustration and calmed himself down.

"Don’t mock me.” Jinho shot him a glare and continued. “So, yeah. I was kind of up there. Not where I expected to be but it was amazing. The adrenaline, the high, the extra push that keeps your blood running even faster– I felt so alive. But then, I guess...highs come with lows and I found myself falling and falling until in the end, I couldn't get out."

A drag. Smoke up in the air.

"Dad died. Had to get away, lived with my grandmother and vowed to live a new life. And now, here I am, caught up in this... wild ride," A snort. "And yes, pun definitely intended."

Hongseok was silent as he stared up at the night sky. The lights inside the building were starting to turn off as the members were getting ready to hit the sack. Flitters of yellow light danced around in the air as fireflies swayed to the silent rhythm of the wind.

"Look, I'm really sorry," Hongseok started. "You were a bystander, you didn't deserve to be brought into this mess–" Jinho cut him off.

"Hongseok, stop. It's fine. What's done is done." Jinho sighed.

"Just… I can take care of myself, okay? I’m not weak. I’ve been convincing myself that for most of my life," Jinho stared Hongseok down, with a pleading look. “Please don’t make me question myself again.” It came out as a whisper. Jinho didn’t mean it to but it did.

Hongseok stared back, stared right through him and pursed his lips. "Sorry. I’ll…I’ll keep that in mind for next time. I just didn’t want you to get hurt. It was never our intention to start any of this.”

Jinho smiled, grateful. "You don't need to tell me that. I doubt you wanted to start anything in the first place,” he smirked. “But you know, I thought you gangsters would be more harsh. More scary. But you're all soft and chuckle-y." This was entirely wrong. They  _were_  harsh and scary. Jinho just didn’t want Hongseok to hide what the truth was–  that this was a dangerous world. Maybe by doing this, Jinho could convince Hongseok to stop ‘taking things down a notch’.

"I'm all what?" Hongseok stopped mid-drag and smoke came out of his mouth every time he spoke a word.

"You're all soft and chuckle-y. Like, I don't know... a teddy bear?" Jinho was laughing inside.

Hogseok was still looking at him, wide-eyed and mouth agape like it was the first time someone had ever called him soft.

Oh.

"Oh, that's cute." Jinho laughed out loud. For the first time in days, he laughed. He didn't know if it was the absurdity of the situation or if he was high from all the nicotine in his lungs and high on this seemingly intimate moment they were currently sharing.

His laugh seemed to have brought Hongseok back to reality and he glared. "Stop laughing. I am not soft. I'm anything but soft."

"Sure, sure, whatever you say Mr. Gangster Boss."

"I'll show you."

"Oh, yeah? How? Will you fight me?" Jinho knows he's playing with fire again.

"I have my ways. I can show you through other...methods." It seems like Hongseok knows too.

Jinho clenched his jaw in excitement and took the shaky first move. "Then, show me."

Hongseok accepted the challenge.

Jinho stared at him defiantly as Hongseok pinched the cigarette from Jinho's hands and threw it into the night. Jinho didn't flinch. He knows he shouldn't.

Jinho was left empty handed and sat as still as the night. Hongseok took one last drag and threw his cigarette away, inching closer and closer.

And he was getting close.  _Really_ close.

Jinho felt his heart thump so hard he was scared it might burst. His heart took it up a notch as suddenly, Hongseok slammed both of his hands onto the railing, effectively shocking Jinho and caging him.

Electricity and fire–  it's there again.

It's as if they were still holding their cigars. Heat and heat, touch and touch. Their breathing was starting to sync, feeling each other as if they were one. They were breathing in the same momentum, hearts pounding to the same beat. Strike two.

Centimeters. Milimeters. Their heads were close–  the closest they've ever been and their lips were a hairs breadth from each other. Jinho closed his eyes, heart pounding in excitement. He was shaking, waiting,  _aching_ –

"Hey, Hongseok-hyung!"

They jumped away from each other so fast it's as if the fire  _actually_  hurt. As if it was actually  _painful_.

The door behind them was wide open, bearing Kino in all his warm and innocent glory. Jinho flitted his eyes away from Kino to Hongseok for a second and saw Hongseok do the same. And they knew.

Just like that, the spell was broken. The moment was separated from this timeline, unable to be recreated. It was a single moment lost to eternity.

"Um... So you were both here. I didn't... I was just..." Kino looked at them suspiciously and noticed the charged atmosphere and their flustered states. Kino didn't want to assume or anything but...

"Did I interrupt something? Should I go? I can go– "

Hongseok sighed deeply and massaged his temples. "Kino, stop blabbering. You weren't interrupting anything. Just- just...get inside."

Kino looked like a deflated balloon.

"Yeah, we were just talking. I was just about to go to sleep actually." Jinho smiled at him. He didn't want to upset Kino.

"Oh, okay. I was looking for you actually. You'll be sleeping with me and Yuto in one room." Kino explained and clapped his hands in joy. Cute.

"Alright!" Jinho said and stood up, dusting off his pants, trying to shake off the moment. He knows he has to focus but he just couldn't.

He turned to Hongseok. He doesn't know what to feel. "Um…Goodnight."

Hongseok stared at him, searching. He seemed to find an answer and the corner of his lips lifted a bit. "Goodnight."

Kino and Jinho turn to leave and thought clouded Jinho’s mind. What face did he show, what answer did he give to the question he didn't even know Hongseok was asking?

He didn't know. 

 _Great_.  _I'm so lost_.


	4. Free

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some background, more fire and finally, they meet.

It was early morning and Jinho was wide awake. He’d been staring at his sky blue ceiling ever since he woke up. _Another boring day_. He sighed and closed his eyes for a while, basking in the silence of his room.

After a couple of minutes, he started hearing the faint sounds of clanging metals coming from downstairs. He opened his eyes and looked at the curtains hanging over the window beside his bed, focusing on the yellow that was slightly splashing against the pure white of the curtains. The yellow wasn’t all that spread out, just a light touch, a splash of color. It took Jinho a while to realize that the yellow was the light from the crack in the window. It was sunlight, threatening to spill into his room.

Jinho sat up and calmly changed. Afterwards, he trudged downstairs, all dressed up in his uniform with his tie slightly loose. His parents were already downstairs in the dining room, his mom delivering cooked dishes from the kitchen and his dad drinking a cup of coffee with the morning paper in his hands. Just a normal day. A normal _boring_ day.

His mom spotted him first and walked towards him. “Jinho, dear! Come have breakfast first and give your father a kiss! He’s going to be gone on a business trip for a month!”

Jinho really couldn’t care less. He has never been close with his father and it’s too late to wish for development in that department. He grunted in response as his mom fixed his tie for him. His mom shot him a disapproving look and Jinho walked away, threw open the door, wore his shoes, and started walking towards school. Along the way, he undid his tie, shoved it in his pocket, and undid some buttons of his shirt.

_Ring._

Last bell of the day and Jinho went to the usual gathering behind the gym. His brothers were already there, cigarettes tucked between fingers and bottles of booze littered on the ground.

“Hey, Jinho! Did ya hear? The boss has something special today for us!”

Jinho grinned as he exchanged high-fives with some of his brothers.

“Oh really? Can’t wait. Oi, Ross! Toss me a cig!”

_Bang. Bang. Bang. Bang._

Jinho looked on at the entire ordeal with mild boredom. Two guys were shaking in front of his boss, the first one bleeding at the arm and the second bleeding at the thigh. Special, my ass. This was becoming almost a daily occurrence.

The guys were all getting a hoot and laughing their drunken asses off. They were being loud, too loud in fact that their usual lackeys standing guard weren’t able to hear the police sirens drawing closer to the park. It took Jinho a couple of seconds to detect the sound and he sprang up from where he was sitting.

“Shit!” Jinho cursed and clasped the shoulders of their boss. He whispered about the police sirens and the boss nodded. He signaled for their brothers to move and they quieted down at last. They all gathered their things hastily and dragged the wounded guys into a beat-up pick-up truck. They hightailed it out of the park with no police on their trail and everyone started cheering again. Jinho looked at them and shook his head with a slight fond smile. The wounded guys were still moaning in pain and that prompted one of their brothers to look back. A beat passed.

“Uh, boss? Someone’s following us.” Jinho quickly looked at the side mirror and squinted his eyes in order to get a clearer look at the man behind the wheel. Jinho cursed again, recognizing the scar under the man’s eyes and quickly informed their boss. It was the gang of the two guys they were shooting holes in just a while ago.

“What the fuck?” An enraged shout. A curse. Gunshots.

It was all a blur now as fragments of his memory faded in and out of his unconsciousness.

Two cars. Another car coming out from nowhere. Three cars. A crash.

They ran away, injured and dazed from the accident. A mess of limbs as they all rushed to be in front of the other, coming into an alley. Police sirens.

_Tap. Tap. Tap._

Jinho’s mind finally focused, faded fragments piecing together in a shape of the day he has longed to never remember. Blurred edges turned sharp and black and white turned into colors.

_Tap. Tap. Tap._

Jinho was dragging his feet, hand on his bicep as blood seeped out from the gash caused by the crash. He was almost to the front door of his house when he noticed something strange. It was quiet. Too quiet. He willed himself to run fast, ignoring the pain in his limbs.

He slammed open the door, swaying slightly, still too dazed from the accident and found his mom huddled in the corner, clutching her phone. It was dark and Jinho reached with his relatively uninjured arm to turn on the light switch. The light enveloped the room and Jinho padded over to his mom with heavy footsteps. His mom heard him and looked up.

Tears were streaming down her face, fresh tears over dried ones, and reached up to clasp Jinho’s cold, blood-caked fingers.

“Where were you and what—what happened? I called the entire day! Your father- he… Your f-father—J-jinho! He’s… He-he’s go—“ His mom couldn’t even finish his sentence but Jinho knew. The business trip, the extra car. The accident.

_No, it couldn’t be—_

He fell to the floor, on his knees as his mom clung onto him, wetting his uniform that must still smell of smoke and blood. The ache, the dull pain in his chest, slowly spreading towards his limbs, numbing his brain, numbing his _everything_.

-~-

Jinho woke up in a cold sweat. He was breathing hard, palms sweaty against the sheets. He sat up, his chest rising and falling to an uneven rhythm. It's been a long time since he dreamt about his past and the sudden comeback of the memory of the accident left him feeling sick. It was probably the stress of coming into a situation so similar to the cause of his trauma that triggered it.

Closing his eyes and clutching his chest as he wills himself to calm down, he sat up and leaned against the wall. Breathing exercises, counting, singing his favorite song in his head. Once his breathing was even, he opened his eyes and checked the time. 6:32am. Kino had told him that they were supposed to move out at 8. He was up too early and he probably won’t be able to fall asleep again. He looked around the room and spotted Kino and Yuto on the same bed. Kino probably fell from the bed and onto Yuto's foam on the floor. 

He rose up and padded towards the table where Kino left clothes for him to wear. He washed up and went out of the room, hungry and still a bit disoriented.

Because it was too early, no one was in the hallways. Since no one was around yet, Jinho floundered around, hoping to find the kitchen to calm his hungry stomach, having to stop a few times to breathe through the sporadic occurrence of chest pains. After a few wrong turns, he finally found the kitchen and was stunned to find someone already there. 

"So, you're a morning person, huh?" Shinwon said as Jinho moved towards him. Shinwon was getting a glass of water and Jinho appeared beside him to do the same. The glasses were located in a cupboard that was already open and he reached in to get himself a glass.

"Just had... a bad dream," Jinho explained and chugged the glass of water Shinwon had poured for him as Shinwon let out a wide yawn. "Never expected you to be one, though." 

Shinwon yawned again and waved off whatever Jinho said. "Oh no, I'm not. I was just so thirsty I had to drink. I'm actually going to go back to sleep. See ya." 

Jinho cracked a small smile as Shinwon walked out, noticing his bedhead and the way his hair bounced with every step. 

With Shinwon gone, Jinho got even more lost. Where was everything in this kitchen? He was so hungry, he didn’t have it in him to care about anything as he started opening random cupboards and drawers. 

"Hey." A deep drawl floated across the room, amidst the clanging sounds he was making. Jinho shot up and hastily closed a drawer that was full of knives. He looked across the room and saw Hongseok standing in the entrance of the kitchen. He was in a white shirt and pajama pants and the normalcy of it all made Jinho’s heart flip. A few beats passed and Jinho wasn’t aware that he was looking at him longer than necessary. Alarms went off in Jinho head, telling him to look away, to look somewhere else but he just couldn't.

It took Jinho awhile to realize the fact that Hongseok was also just standing there, watching Jinho check him out. Their gazes met and Jinho looked away at last, too flustered by the intensity of his gaze and the charged atmosphere between them. There was still that leftover energy from the night before and it was too much to handle so early in the morning. To add to that, Jinho was hungry. So very hungry that his stomach couldn't take it and had to grumble out loud. 

Jinho heard a soft chuckle and looked over at Hongseok, who was making his way to the coffee maker.

"Want some coffee?" Hongseok offered as he prepared to make coffee. Coffee wasn't really what Jinho had in mind but he said yes anyway. There must've been a twinge of disappointment in Jinho's tone because Hongseok also offered to make Jinho a sandwich. He would've made it himself but he didn't know where everything was. He voiced it out.

"Sure. I could make it myself though. Except I don't know where everything is." he said as Hongseok let out a yawn. Jinho continued staring at him and noted the way the muscle of his arm moved with every action.

"Telling you where everything is will be too much of a hassle. I’ll make it for you." Hongseok said as he scrambled around to get the ingredients. He was opening drawers and cupboards left and right and Jinho couldn’t help but move forward when he almost dropped a plate. Hongseok still looked like he was tired with all the yawning he was doing and Jinho didn’t want to just stand there and look at him make a mess of everything.

"I could help you?" Jinho offered. "I mean, aren't you also going to make sandwiches for the others and stuff?" Jinho must've said something wrong because Hongseok stopped moving. 

"What am I, their mom?" Hongseok said in a low voice as he turned to Jinho and leaned against the granite counters. There's a strange glint in his eye and it's telling Jinho that he, indeed, said something that he probably shouldn't have said. Hongseok crossed his arm and Jinho’s eyes moved down to stare at the muscles in his arms. "They can feed themselves, Jinho. It's my job to lead them but it's their job to keep their own bodies healthy." 

Here he is again. Sometimes it's not even the way he carried himself with so much confidence that made Jinho wary of him but how fast his personality changes. It made Jinho realize that he really doesn't know the _real_ Hongseok. Of course, he doesn’t expect to since he’s only know him for a little over a week but he can’t help but feel uneasy at the duality of the man.

Jinho started at Hongseok’s tone. Being in the presence of this particular part of Hongseok brings out the brasher side of him, which may or may not be a good thing, he doesn't know.

"Okay, alright. Jeez. I was just offering. After all, I don't know how any of these _biker gang thingies_ work." He defended and took another sip of his water, glaring at Hongseok in frustration. Sure, he was part of a gang back in highschool but that was a relatively small group. This biker gang is obviously on a different scale, a whole new level. This biker gang thing is very new to him so can Hongseok just cut him some slack? Asshole.

Hongseok just stayed quiet for a bit, as if he was really considering what Jinho just said, all the while looking at him. Jinho flushed under his stare and not wanting to go down without a fight, levelled his eyes to meet his. After a few seconds, Hongseok broke and flashed him a smile. Jinho's stomach turned and he was sure it wasn't because of hunger. Hongseok's smile was almost predatory as he approached Jinho with a solid purpose. The fluid movement, of Hongseok’s lean muscles showing through the thin fabric of his shirt, left Jinho glued to his spot. He was too intimidated and also too _stimulated_ at Hongseok's approaching form. He clenched his jaw.

"Well, do you want to know how it works, Mr. Jo Jinho?" Hongseok said, his voice going down a few octaves. “I can tell you, you know.”

The change in his voice and the new glint in his eyes had Jinho curling his toes. Hongseok was nearer now, successful in his attempt to trap Jinho against the granite counters. Jinho gulped and jumped as Hongseok practically pushed himself onto Jinho, two strong and muscled arms on either side of him.

The air was charged again. Electricty and heat with a scent of coffee. It was intoxicating, invigorating and satisfying all at once. Hongseok stared deeply into Jinho's eyes. It sparked a flame at the back of Jinho's spine, just enough for his entire body to feel hot. 

Unaware of Jinho's internal fire alarms going haywire, Hongseok parted his full lips and inched closer. Jinho felt Hongseok's breath on him, surprisingly smelling of toothpaste. So the crazy gang leader brushes his teeth immediately as he wakes up, huh?

“All you have to do is ask.” Hongseok’s lips were beside his ear, his breath warm on Jinho’s skin. He stopped himself before he can visible shiver and forced himself to pay attention to Hongseok’s side profile.

He smells like soap which belatedly made Jinho realize that he probably still had morning breath. He was also very hungry and feeling very agitated. Jinho was panicking, internally and externally. He was clearly imploding and Hongseok probably thought nothing of it as he inched his face towards Jinho’s. Heart beating so fast, Jinho was about to push him off when another external force interrupted them.

The coffee maker went off and Hongseok groaned, noticeably disappointed. Jinho was still breathing heavily as Hongseok separated himself from him and walked towards the machine. He got two cups from the cupboard and prepared them swiftly as if he does it every day (which he probably does) and handed one over to Jinho, still looking a tad angry at being disrupted. Jinho took it gingerly, sending a silent prayer of thanks to all the gods he knows and blew across the mug before taking a sip. Caffeine entered his system and he's more awake now, his mind clearer. He placed the mug down and was about to say thank you to Hongseok when he was caught off-guard by a pair of warm lips crashing on top of his. 

It was warm coffee on his lips and cream and sugar on his tongue. Hongseok had him pinned to the counter again but this time his hands were on his body. Hongseok was holding his cheek with one hand and the other was wrapped around his waist. It was electricity and heat all over again, in everywhere, in the places where their skin touched and their tongues collided. Jinho had his hands in Hongseok hair, carding through them.

It was a soft at first, as though they were testing the waters. But like how storms turn seas and rapids disturb waters, it escalated to a fierce dance of lips, tongues and teeth. Their lips were moving against each other, occasionally parting as tongue met and teeth collided. It was passionate after the soft and it was hungry, too deprived and too excited. Hands were on skin, gripping hairs and tightening around waists. 

They settled after a while, content in a steady rhythm and they momentarily parted, breathing heavily and foreheads against each other. It was silent Jinho couldn't think, could only focus on their heavy breathing. He didn't know what to make of the situation but it sent butterflies dancing in his stomach and the flames at the bottom of his spine churned even more. Jinho was about to speak but before he could open his mouth, Hongseok captured his lips once more. They were kissing again and it made Jinho chuckle as he let out a breathy, "easy there, tiger". 

Hongseok just smiled through the kiss as he teased Jinho's lips into a frivolous yet passionate rhythm, of wet gasps and broken-off moans. Hongseok took his upper lip and sucked, making him grasp at the strands of Hongseok's hair a bit too tightly. Hongseok groaned at the action and sucked even harder, nipping at it before moving to the bottom lip. Jinho was breathing heavily, too dazed to think straight and too distracted to notice when Hongseok pulled him up and set him on top of the counter. His legs immediately went wrap around Hongseok's waist, the friction and contact of their lower bodies making them both moan in satisfaction.

They were connected now, in the heat of the moment and lost in the heat of each other. Hongseok pulled Jinho tighter, which elicited a moan from the smaller and he moved his hands behind Hongseok’s neck. Now they were even closer and Jinho wouldn't have it any other way. Hongseok was still ravishing his lips as though it was his favorite thing in the world when they heard a small squeak from the kitchen doorway.

Time stopped and they broke apart from each other, lips red and breaths heavy.

Kino and Yuto were standing just outside the kitchen entrance. Jinho internally groaned when he noticed Kino covering his red face and Yuto looking off to the sides while fiddling his thumbs. Jinho was panicking again, going through all the possible reasons, possible lies they could feed to them on why they were standing so close to each other. At that thought, he cursed himself and jumped off of the counter, pushing Hongseok away and coughed. He straightened out his clothes and looked at the corner of his eyes. Hongseok, standing a bit farther now, was also looking very red and very disheveled. The situation at hand to the side, Jinho was proud at the fact that he’s able to make the gangster so flustered to the point where he was rendered almost speechless.

Yuto was the first to break the tense atmosphere.

“Good morning.”

“Yeah, mornin’.” Jinho mumbled while looking at his feet and went to get another glass of water to cool himself down. At the back of his mind he knew that Yuto and Kino saw them kissing but he can’t help but hold onto the sliver of hope that says they hadn’t.

“Yuto, Kino, good morning,” Hongseok cleared his throat and walked forward, obviously back to his senses, to clasp Yuto’s shoulder. “Yuto, why don’t you make a sandwich for Jinho. He’s been hungry since this morning and I’m afraid he’s still starving.”

At the last part, he looked back at Jinho and shot him a wink. Jinho flushed to the roots of his hair and saw red. This asshole! Hongseok just smirked when he saw Jinho’s expression and rubbed his hands together.

“Now that that’s settled, I have to go and oversee our preparations,” Hongseok said with an air or seriousness, back to being the gang leader that he is. “We leave in 20 minutes.” With that, he left.

It was silent as they listened to his footsteps go down the hallway. When he was sure that Hongseok was out of earshot, Kino outright squealed. Jinho was surprised at first but then returned to groaning while covering his face with his hands. They really did see them kissing. Jinho doesn’t know what to do now. Crap.

“Oh my god, hyung! I can’t believe this! That was so cute!” Kino sputtered and looked like he was about to fly with rainbows and sparkles coming out of his butt. Cute? Which part?

“Guys, just…please. You didn’t see anything that was just—“ Jinho was driving himself off a cliff when a savior in the form of Yuto caught him.

“Kino, stop it. You’re embarrassing, Jinho-hyung,” Yuto’s level-headedness was certainly a bright light in the darkness of the situation and Jinho was about to express his gratitude when Yuto continued.

“Don’t worry, hyung. I’ll make a sandwich for you since your first meal _obviously_ wasn’t enough.” Jinho groaned some more and gripped the strands of his hair amidst the laugh of the younger ones. What did he do to deserve this?

-~-

The sky was yellow and bright and everyone was awake. They were outside, at the back of the building where more than two dozen motorcycles were stationed. They were black, with occasional splashes of blue and red, daunting. For some reason looking at them made Jinho nervous.

He was in the middle of the group, with gangsters on both of his sides. There were a lot of them and Jinho found himself unsurprised at how popular the stories of biker gangs were. From an outsider’s point of view, they probably looked somewhat cool. What with Hongseok facing the group, the sun high at his back, the cloth of the bandana on his forehead waving in the wind and with their bikes behind them. There was a sense of adventure and camaraderie in the situation that Jinho relished in.

“We head east, to the next town. Like I said last night, we have some deals that we have to deliver and we’ll set up base there until further notice. Also, I want the danger brought by Takada and possibly Hwaitaek’s men to still be fresh on your minds. Something big is going on here and if we don’t keep an eye on it, we’re going down for sure. Everyone, understand?” Hongseok said in a loud and commanding voice. There was a flurry of affirmatives and Hongseok continued.

“Alright. Follow my lead. And we move as one, like always.” Hongseok was about to motion for everyone to climb their bikes when Kino spoke up.

“Boss, where will Jinho ride?” Everyone stopped moving and went back to their original positions. Oh yeah. Jinho was so caught up in the glorious moment that he forgot he didn’t know how to drive a motorcycle.

Hongseok raised his eyebrows at Kino with a look that said ‘ _isn’t it obvious?’_.

“He’s riding with me, of course.” If the gangsters were surprised, they weren’t hiding it well. Some coughed while others widened their eyes. At least, they didn’t gasp out loud (save for Kino, obviously). That would have been more embarrassing. Jinho stared at Hongseok, wide-eyed. Of course this asshole won’t leave him alone.

“Another tidbit: the boss doesn’t let anyone else ride his bike. You’re the first. Although this isn’t your first time riding with him.” Shinwon told Jinho in passing as he climbed up his bike right next to where Jinho stood. His first time riding with Hongseok would have to be after the convenience store incident. He doesn’t remember it very well but he recalled the last words he heard before he blacked out and it was definitely Hongseok’s voice.

Jinho could only nod silently at Shinwon as he caught Hongseok’s stare. He walked towards him and took the helmet he was offering. Still feeling his stare on him, Jinho strapped the helmet on, careful to get his hair away from his face but to no avail.

He heard Hongseok chuckle and the helmet was plucked out from his hands.

“Hold your hair.” Hongseok said and Jinho did as he was told. With Jinho’s hand moving his hair away, Hongseok placed the helmet on his head just as Jinho’s hand left his hair. It was all about timing and it was perfect.

“There you go!” Hongseok said cheerily as he patted the side of Jinho’s helmet. Frustrated, Jinho lightly slapped his hand away with a huff. He heard the gangster laugh and said, “Are we getting on, now or what?”

“Oh, you’re definitely right, sweetheart. We’re totally getting it on—“

“That’s not what I meant!” Jinho couldn’t help but blush at the endearment and wanted to kiss and punch Hongseok at the same time. Hongseok laughed again and finally climbed on, got himself comfy and gestured for Jinho to get behind him. Jinho looked at the motorcycle, both scared and excited. He could do this, just believe, Jo Jinho. He clenched his fists and ungracefully climbed behind Hongseok.

“Put your arms around me.” Hongseok turned around to tell Jinho. Of course, it was this kind of situation. Jinho nodded the held onto Hongseok’s jacket. At the contact, Hongseok turned around again so fast, Jinho was afraid he would get whiplash. “Arms _around_ me.”

Jinho took a deep breath and circled his arms around Hongseok. It was a loose hold, Jinho knew that so he wasn’t surprised, just a bit irked, when Hongseok forcefully grabbed his arms and tightened them around his torso. Jinho was dragged forward at the force and they were now glued to one another, much like they were this morning. At that thought, Jinho felt himself flush again and flushed some more when he realized that this time, they had an audience. In fact, they were at the top of the pack, in clear view of everyone.

“A few moments from now, I’ll have you screaming so loud, you’d lose your voice. So hold on carefully. And tightly.” Hongseok said which made Jinho blush even deeper at the innuendos. Just to spite him, Jinho tightened his hold as best as he can. He felt Hongseok’s breath stop short. His hands were laced near Hongseok’s abdomen and he could feel the form of prominent abs. Through his hold he could also feel Hongseok’s muscles, how lean they were and how strong Hongseok probably is. Jinho hated himself for doing that and loosened his arms again.

“Easy there, tiger.” Hongseok said almost breathlessly, flinging Jinho’s words from this morning back at him. He could feel himself imploding again. Before he can do anything that might embarrass him more, Jinho shut up and remained stoic behind Hongseok. However, this was short-lived as Hongseok started and revved his engine, letting out a roar and a shudder that brought Jinho even closer to Hongseok than he thought was possible.

At Hongseok’s roar, the other gangsters did the same. It was a cacophony of machinery imitating animalistic sounds and Jinho’s heartbeat sped up. This felt so amazing, so invigorating, so riveting. He grinned to himself.

With one last roar, Hongseok drove, turned the curb, and sped forward. Jinho can feel the wind in his hair, hitting his cheeks. He could hear the roaring of the engines, the flaps from Hongseok’s jacket moving against the wind. Jinho was so tempted to let go and raise his arms up in the air but he knew it would be dangerous. He felt so open, the adrenaline working its way into his system as the thrill of danger and adventure shot up.

The world around them was a blur and Jinho felt exhilarated, excited, enchanted and for the first time in a long time, he felt _free_.

-~-

They arrived just before nightfall and dropped off their things at the new building.

While they were unpacking, Shinwon took it upon himself to explain to Jinho about the living situations of the biker gangs. Apparently gangs have their own ‘headquarters’ in each city on properties they’ve rightfully claimed, through terms agreed on by the two parties, or passed down from each gang generation to the next. This time, they’re making home in a red-brick building, with vines coming from cracks between bricks in various places. It’s a tall building with four floors, the first of which was rented out to make space for a bookstore and a dingy laundromat.

Hongseok had originally wanted them all to rest immediately but some of the members wanted to eat out and had begged Hongseok to treat them. Jinho didn’t understand the logic because he assumed that all of the money the gang earns goes back to each one of them equally. He’s probably wrong about all of this so he just stayed silent. Hongseok hesitated at first but then more members began to urge him and he finally agreed with a fond smile on his face. Hongseok might seem all moody and scary but Jinho could see how much he cares for the gang and how much he treasures their bond.

A few minutes later, they arrived at a nondescript diner at the end of their street. It was much darker at this part of the street, with shady alleys and dilapidated buildings. The only life that seemed to thrive off of the gloomy atmosphere was the diner. They all entered as if they owned the place, which they probably did (Jinho made a mental note to ask). Kino was behind Jinho, pushing him forward with a hand at his back.

The diner looked so run-down from the outside that Jinho was pleasantly surprised at the cleanliness of the interior. The diner was designed to replicate those medieval taverns, with the floors and walls patterned with wood. There was a small stage at one corner, parallel to center of the diner which surprisingly had a bar with a wooden counter surrounding the bartender’s area. It was a weird cross between a bar and a diner and Jinho thought the set-up somehow worked. People were drinking and eating in their own spaces in the diner and Jinho was not surprised when some of the gang members approached them and interacted. This area was their domain and everyone knew each other. They’re probably even indebted to the gang in some complex way.

Jinho watched as Hongseok approached the bartender and exchanged greetings. The bartender was beaming, clapping Hongseok’s back and telling some of the waiters to prepare them food and drinks. Hongseok returned the bartender’s smile and motioned for his members to disperse and do whatever they want. The noise in the bar-diner grew louder and Jinho found himself sitting at the bar counter with Kino, Yuto, Shinwon, and Hongseok. They were in front of the bartender who was serving them drinks, placing them on the counter in front of them.

Jinho was sipping on his drink, mulling over the fact that he was totally clueless about how the gang worked, when Hongseok pushed a bowl of peanuts towards him.

“You probably have some questions, huh?” Hongseok said while munching on some nuts. He wasn’t looking at Jinho, his head turned forward. Jinho looked down at his drink and rubbed the pads of his thumbs on the glass.

“Yeah,” Jinho nodded his head and saw Hongseok cock his head to the side from the corner of his eyes. “Do you…own this place?”

Jinho wasn’t sure how to phrase his question but he decided to just go for it.

“Well, not really,” Hongseok explained. “Since everything on this side of town is our property, all establishments have to pay rent and depending on their contract, have to give a dividend of their income every month.”

Jinho thought about what Hongseok said. “I get the rent part but why do they have to give you a part of what they earn?”

Hongseok leaned back and took out a cigarette from the pocket of his leather jacket. “This part of town is known for petty crimes by… wild hooligans. In exchange for a part of their income, we offer them extra security. We also help them when it comes to their appliances.”

“Wild hooligans? Appliances?” Jinho said, confused.

“Deliquents who think they’re too good for a gang and troublemakers who think it’s smart going against my gang.” Hongseok said with a devilish grin, lighting up his cigarette. The bartender placed an ashtray in front of him. There’s a fine line between arrogance and confidence and Jinho believes that with Hongseok, there is no line.

“If you still don’t know what we deal, Jinho, I’ll be very worried and hurt.” Hongseok said, placing his free hand on his chest while pouting. Jinho gritted his teeth, ignoring the warmth settling on his cheeks.

“Look, I didn’t have time to go around asking what it is you gangsters do. If you didn’t notice, I was just dragged around, in the dark of everything.” Jinho released everything in one angry breath and huffed at the end, crossing his arms. Hongseok didn’t have the right to call Jinho out on not being aware of his surroundings. He had gone through so much in the last few days and of course something like this could easily slip his mind.

Hongseok went silent as he considered what Jinho said. It’s only right that Jinho was mad at him for making an insensitive comment. He sighed and apologized.

“Yes, ah. Sorry about that. I didn’t realize how heavy this entire situation is to you,” Hongseok put out his cigarette and scratched the back of his neck. “You see, each gang operates similar to a… business, you could say. Our gang specializes in technology so we deal with various gadgets and electrical supplies. We supply, repair, buy, sell to different areas in the country—in both the legal divisions and black markets.

So, we supply some of the appliances in the establishment on this part of town and if they can’t pay at the moment they want to buy it, we offer them this contract— placate them with the considerate act of allowing down payments.” Hongseok grinned at Jinho, his eyes catching the light of the diner lights. “See? I’m a good person, aren’t I?”

“Extra security, down payments and contracts telling them to pay a portion of their income monthly…” Jinho racked his brain, doubting whatever Hongseok was feeding him. There’s something wrong with his ‘good person’ statement and Jinho knew exactly why. “You mean, down payments _but with interest_? Good person, my ass!”

To anyone who would be desperate for security and technological supplies, the deal sounded golden but to Jinho, it sounded like a scam. One-time payment for the security and electrical supplies should be enough but to lure them into this money-grabbing scheme in the guise of… kindness? Jinho’s stomach turned.

Hongseok just laughed and for some reason the atmosphere in the bar changed all of a sudden. There was fervent energy in the air and just as Hongseok was about to retort, he shut his mouth and placed his hand on his earpiece, eyebrows furrowing. When it seemed like Hongseok finally got the message, he cursed and pulled out his gun just moments before everything in the bar exploded.

There were loud sounds of glasses breaking and wood splitting immediately after Hongseok pulled Jinho to hide behind the bar counter. Gunshots were still heard overhead as Hongseok placed a hand on Jinho’s head, slightly pushing him down so he would stay in his place. Jinho’s heart was beating so fast at the adrenaline. He was doing his best to stay focused and to keep his breathing even. He looked around and saw Kino, Yuto, and Shinwon pulling out their guns, talking into their ear pieces. Jinho felt useless once again and just when the gunshots were starting to ease, he felt the cool metallic touch of a handgun being pushed into his hands.

“Here, for protection. I’m assuming you know how to fire a gun?” Hongseok asked lowly, staring at Jinho with a ferocity in his eyes.

It’s been so long but he nodded wordlessly and held the grip of the gun tightly. He looked on as Hongseok motioned for the other three to his sides to stand down. The other three nodded and silently carried on Hongseok’s message to the others through their earpieces.

Hongseok gritted his teeth. “These bastards. I didn’t want to bring Louis into this problem but they just had to make a mess of this place. Going out tonight was a bad idea. Shit.”

Jinho could understand Hongseok’s distress and just nodded grimly. He watched as Hongseok furrowed his eyebrows even more, his jaw getting rigid.

“Yang Hongseok!” At the voice, the four gangsters stiffened. Kino, in particular, lowered his head and sighed.

“Wow, boss. Looks like you’re in high demand. So popular.” Shinwon said, struggling to remain humorous and unfazed as beads of sweat appeared on his forehead.

“I know and it’s fucking annoying. What does everyone want with me?” Hongseok laughed through his nose and brought his gun closer to himself. Hongseok didn’t want to go on an all-out shooting here, especially in Louis place no matter how much he wanted to. Louis was a good man and god be damned Hongseok bring this man to hell with him.

“Yah! Hongseok! I heard you had some business with me? Well, I have some business with you as well.”

“Stop hiding, you piece of fuck!”

“Come out, you coward!”

More voices joined the first one and the bar turned rowdy again as some gunshots were heard breezing across the diner. It was probably some of Hongseok men. Hongseok cursed again and stood up with a hand in the air.

The shooting immediately stopped and Jinho saw Hongseok look forward with a chilling look on his face.

“What the fuck do you want, Lee Hwitaek?” Jinho saw Kino shake his head.

“Bold of you to be so clueless, Yang Hongseok. It’s times like this when I really hate dealing with the pyschos on this side of town.” The mocking tone of the speaker made Jinho’s toes curl. Lee Hwitaek. A name that came up a lot during his time around these gangsters. Jinho didn’t know much about him but he’s sure the answers would come soon enough.

Hongseok snorted. “Hah! ‘Psycho’, you say? I advise you to look at a mirror, Hwitaek. I’m not the _madman_ who pulled out his guns in public, barged into a bar and started shooting and endangering random innocent people just because he felt like it!”

Laughter and a snort. Jinho had goosebumps and he had to cover his arms just to keep himself from shivering.

“You think you’re funny, don’t you, Hongseok? Well, to spell it out for you, my gang and I came here for revenge.” A pause. “And to take back one of our members who you are currently holding hostage.”

Jinho was aware of the stares of the other three behind the counter with him and he vigorously shook his head. It’s really not him. He wasn’t a spy. He was really just an innocent bystander. After assuring the other members, he looked up at Hongseok just in time for him to catch the gangster’s eye.

“Tsk, tsk. Are your members just as cowardly as you, Yang Hongseok? Call out your men. And women.” A laugh. “It’s a ceasefire.” A pause. “For now.”

At Hongseok’s silence, the members began reappearing. Yuto and Shinwon slowly stood up. Kino, on the other hand was taking it even slower. He finally stood up, his fists clenched. Jinho followed his movements with worried eye, wondering about the history between Lee Hwitaek and Kino. Jinho took a deep breath before following suit. He was standing now and his breath hitched at the view in front of him.

Gangsters much like from Hongseok’s gang were scattered all around near the entrance of the bar. They were all sporting head caps, with guns in their hands and were as frightening as Hongseok’s gang. In front of all the others stood four men, with one just slightly forward than the other three. He was standing with a gun in his hand, his silver hair slicked back and his eyebrows slightly raised. He had long limbs and a lanky figure, unlike Hongseok’s, but his presence and charisma was just as powerful.

Lee Hwitaek cracked a smile and nodded at Kino.

“Hyunggu, hope you’re doing well.” Kino nodded briskly and Jinho wondered if Hyunggu was his real name. As Jinho stared at the exchange, he felt a shiver run up his spine. He stiffened and looked back at the silver-haired gangster.

“Well, well, well. What do we have here? Got yourself a new addition, Hongseok? Can’t say I’ve ever seen a gangster as short as he is.”

All feelings of fear fled Jinho and were replaced with irritation. He clenched his jaw and narrowed his eyes, gripping his gun tighter. Hongseok stole a glance at Jinho, hoping that Jinho won’t do anything stupid and run that reckless mouth of his.

Hwitaek whistled when he noted the change in Jinho’s demeanor and said, “Feisty as well. Well, aren’t you cute?”

_This fucker!_

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [unedited chapter]
> 
> Hello again! Thank you for waiting patiently. I hope you enjoyed this chapter especially with how long it is. With this chapter, I hope the reason for Jinho's apprehension towards gangs (and i guess violence?) is clearer. I wanted to make his dream more dramatic and vague but I ended up making it dramatic with a mix of detailed and vague moments. Haha it was a fail but I hope it still conveyed what I wanted it to. 
> 
> Also, yay they finally kissed and Hui's gang finally arrived. I rewrote the arrival of Hui's gang more than 5 times and thought it over almost everyday in my mind. It was tough but this was the closest to what I wanted their entrance to be.
> 
> Anyway, I hope you enjoyed and I revived an rarely used TWITTER account so you can talk and ask me about anything haha @ me @/jojijiri if you want :) 
> 
> and i just want to say, august has been a very hard month for us unis so I hope you're doing well. Let's stay strong for the boys and for each other! <3


	5. Steps

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Revelations and beginnings.

_This fucker!_

Fueled by his anger and completely forgetting about the fact that he was talking to a gang boss, he opened his mouth to retort. It was a foolish thing to do but Jinho was blinded by a painful rage. He was getting tired of all these strangers belittling him. He had to do something about it, had to let it all out.

He was well on his way to answering back when he stopped short. Before he could say something offensive and get potentially shot, Hongseok had lightly touched the butt of his gun to Jinho’s forearm. The feel of the gun was a stark contrast to his warm skin. With the gun subtly pressed into his skin, Jinho stood frozen, the cool touch of the gun bringing him back to the reality of the situation. His wide eyes took in his surroundings, the silver-haired gangster with the menacing aura, his grip strong around the gun, his members behind him, ready to strike, and the wrecked interior of the bar-diner. The gun against his skin was both a wake-up call and a warning— a subtle yet effective move.

When Hongseok finally drew back his gun, Jinho released a shaky breath. He clenched his fists, mentally berating himself for his stupidity then looked at Lee Hwitaek with all the civility that he could muster.

“Oh and he’s trained, too.” The silver-haired gangster said, releasing a mocking laugh. This time, it was Hongseok who got mad and before Jinho could return the favor and keep Hongseok calm, the gangster raised his gun and shot at the glass bottle on the table nearest to Hwitaek’s gang.

The glass shattered, a defeaning crash in the tension-filled atmosphere of the bar. When the small glass shards hit some of Hwitaek’s gang members, almost immediately, the opposing gangsters raised their own guns in preparation for retaliation.

Hwitaek released a low whistle and gestured for their guns to be lowered. “Ah, that was bit tasteless, wasn’t it?”

Hongseok huffed in anger and raised his voice. “What the fuck do you want, Hwitaek? You’re nothing but a nuisance here.”

Hwitaek clicked his tongue and wagged his finger. “You’re really _stupid_ aren’t you, Hongseok? I already told you. We’re here for revenge and to take back one of our members. And as much as I’d like to continue to just deal with all of this through bullets and steel, I’ve decided to take the higher road and be diplomatic. This is what is expected of _us_ , after all.”

Hongseok narrowed his eyes at the implication. Hwitaek was right. It would do no good for the top gangs to be at war. They had tried to maintain a civility among the top gangs that the mafia and yakuza could only dream of and risking it right now, when things were so unclear, would be disastrous.

Hwitaek drew away his gun and all his members did the same. Hwitaek was looking at Hongseok with a hard glint in his eyes and Hongseok, not one to back down, was intensely glaring at him as well. Jinho watched the silent ordeal with a thoughtful yet fearful look. Their gazes were demanding yet careful, and after a few minutes, Hongseok pocketed his gun in his holster, both of the bosses seeming to have reached a silent agreement. The members followed suit and Jinho, not knowing where to hide his gun, was left clueless. Thankfully, Hongseok held out a hand towards him. Jinho immediately gave him back his gun.

And then, there was a semblance of peace.

Hwitaek nodded silently and grinned. “So, let’s chat, shall we?”

 

-~-

 

Members from both gangs were moving around the bar-diner, fixing things here and there while Louis was shouting orders above them. It was kind of funny to see gangsters who were holding guns and shooting at each other just a while ago work together and be made to do menial things like wipe tables and sweep the floor. Louis was getting angry at some of them for handling some bottles too roughly and Jinho found it hard not to snigger at the sight of an old and balding man berating two men with scars and an eye patch.

As the gangsters were scurrying around, the bosses were at one corner of the bar-diner. Hwitaek and three of his men sat at the table adjacent to where Hongseok sat, along with Kino, Shinwon, Yuto, and Jinho. It was quiet for a while as Hongseok pulled out a cigarette and Yuto, who immediately produced a lighter, came forward to light it. Hwitaek, on the other hand, asked the tall, black-haired guy with them to get a glass of whisky. Jinho was sitting slightly away from the table, unsure why he was here in this important meeting. He hardly knew about the whole gangster situation so he wouldn’t be of much help here. Although he was slightly grateful because he absolutely hated manual labor.

Drowning in his thoughts, he must’ve been fidgeting so much because he felt Kino’s place his hand on top of his. The comfort he felt was overwhelming that he almost felt tears prick at the corner of his eyes.

“So,” Hongseok started, after taking a drag from his cigarette. “Talk.”

Hwitaek raised his eyebrow at the terse order. As much as he hated Yang Hongseok for what he’d recently done, he doesn’t deny the fact that he’s a great leader. They’d been on civil terms before this incident but that was because Hwitaek, in a way, respected the younger. Long before Hongseok controlled his gang, the gang had been nothing but a group of rowdy and unforgiving ruffians who thought of nothing but drugs, sex, and alcohol. Their boss back then was, admittedly, nothing short of brilliant, but like the other bosses before him, had gotten himself too obsessed with money and power which eventually led to their demise. When Yang Hongseok came into the picture, it had caused quite a commotion in the gang scene. After all, Hongseok was the one who brought the unknown gang to power and glory.

“A week ago, my members and I were enjoying a good game of billiards. Everything was all fine and dandy— I was even winning, mind you— when suddenly, we were attacked. Men wearing black bandanas ambushed the bar and started shooting. Good thing, we were fast enough and took them down.” Hwitaek turned his glass, the whiskey sloshing around. “The attack was of poor taste, so I doubted you for a while. But then, Yanan went missing.”

Hwitaek took a sip and then abruptly placed his glass down, causing the wooden table to creak. There was a new glint in his eyes. “Sounds familiar, Hongseok?”

Hongseok’s brows were furrowed in deep thought. Nothing about what Hwitaek sounded right. Something even bigger is going on here.

“Actually, no.” Hongseok said after a while. “A week ago, we were also ambushed. It was just a normal night, then about a dozen men wearing caps attacked us.”

Everyone in their circle stopped moving. The implications of what they were both saying dawned on all of them. None knew of the attack on the other and this was troubling. Other gangs wouldn’t want to mess with Yang Hongseok and Lee Hwitaek’s gang, so external gang aggression was out of the picture.

Jinho could almost hear the gears turn in all of the gangsters’ heads. Hwitaek looked particularly pensive, taking a huge gulp from his glass. Hongseok looked troubled, taking a long drag from his cigarette. The first few pieces of the puzzle have now been laid down but things were getting even more dangerous with the realization that the puzzle was bigger than they thought.

The silence stretched, filled with the clinking of ice from Hwitaek’s glass and the soft burn of the ashes from Hongseok’s cigarette. Louis was still shouting behind them but it felt so far away. A couple of minutes went by until Yuto suddenly moved. He lifted his hands to his ears, the static from his earpiece slightly heard over the deafening silence. He said a curt affirmative and went to Hongseok.

“Boss, Caleb found something. He wants to tell you as soon as possible.” Yuto said. Hongseok nodded his head and thanked him before turning to Hwitaek’s gang. Hongseok took one last drag before putting it out on the ashtray that Shinwon produced out of nowhere.

“One of my men has intel on this situation and it might be useful while we figure out this mess.” Hongseok told Hwitaek while nodding. The silver-haired gangster just nodded his head in return and held out his glass for another fill.

“Boss!”

All heads turned towards the bumbling red-head who just entered the establishment. It was Caleb. He was sweating, his goggles still on his face and he was in an obvious frenzy. He was speed-walking towards them, ignorant of his busy surroundings, as members of Hongseok’s gang started making way for him to pass while he had to dodge members from Hwitaek’s gang.

“Caleb, good timing. What do you have for us?” Hongseok said once the red-head came to a stop in front of him.

Caleb wasted no time and just jumped into it. “Okay so, I exhausted all our channels, legal and illegal, and found information that Lee Hwitaek’s gang is on the move. They might be—”

“Caleb. I think we know that already.” Hongseok said bluntly.

Caleb blanched and looked around for the first time, spotting the other gang sitting in front of Hongseok. He saw caps and his mouth formed an ‘o’ shape. He blushed even more and scratched the back of his neck in embarrassment. “O-oh, I see! Then, um… there’s that! But I also found something else!”

Hongseok sat up straighter and Hwitaek crossed his legs. Caleb didn’t continue afterwards, looking at Hwitaek with wariness. He was unsure whether it was right to divulge the information he had to the other gang. He coughed and looked at Hongseok uncomfortably. Hongseok, as perceptive as ever, nodded his head in silent response. Caleb nodded back and cleared his throat.

“So-something is stirring up among the higher-ups in the local police. There’s some sort of ‘secret’ operation going on to counter the recent rise in the drug dealings in certain areas,” Caleb scratched the back of his neck. “Actually, one of our bases in the north had recently been observed by undercover policemen. Policemen around that area usually conduct these investigations but that time was different. Their methods of surveillance were… unusual, to say the least.” Hongseok took everything in calm silence. Hwitaek, too, looked serene.

“From what I could gather, I think the police suspects our and Lee Hwitaek’s gang to be involved in the dealing of a large bulk of imported drugs about a month ago. Apparently, the amount of drugs brought in could fill ten warehouses and would be enough to supply an entire country with drugs for about a year. I think they were exaggerating but still— it’s a _really_ huge shipment. It also seems that it was a very important deal, what with most of the foreign cartels joining in. But when the police finally caught wind of it, the drugs were gone. Info brokers say that it keeps getting transferred, so the police are having a bit of trouble tracing them.”

“So because of their incompetence, they blindly targeted anyone who could be potential suspects?” Hwitaek supplied, all the confusion before now gone from his face.

“So they could kill the problem at its source, huh?” Hongseok said thoughtfully and crossed his arms. Jinho looked between the two of them. All the lines of hostility dissipated into thin air to make way for apprehension. The big pieces are there but they weren’t exactly fitted together. Some important information were missing. This explains the ongoing hostilities in the externals of the gang but it doesn’t explain the ambushes. Were the ambushes connected to this somehow?

“What if we were both set-up?” Shinwon voiced his thoughts from beside Hongseok. When he said that, the blond beside Hwitaek immediately lit up like a christmas tree and made an excited noise. Everyone turned their heads from Shinwon to the blond.

“Oh, you’re right! Since we’re both suspects, what if the police posed to be the other in order to get us to fight. It’ll make it easy for them because we’ll basically be the ones doing all the work in eliminating each other and stuff.”

A beat passed and both Hwitaek and Hongseok broke into a laugh. The other members around the table also started shaking and sniggering. Jinho looked at them, just as lost as ever.

“Those fuckers! My god!” Hwitaek wheezed out in between laughs while hitting his knee. Jinho blinked slowly, trying to register if the man in front of him is the same man who had compared him to a trained animal.

After a few more wheezes and badly contained snorts, they all started to calm down. Hongseok still had tears in his eyes and Kino was still leaning against Yuto for support. Jinho unconsciously smiled, taking in the situation. Although he was still scared and astronomically confused, laughter was still an addictive thing.

“Got it. Thanks, Caleb. Go and get yourself a meal over there,” Hongseok said while motioning to the middle of the bar where Louis was currently cleaning the counter. Caleb nodded with a huge smile on his face and walked off. Hongseok turned towards Hwitaek and his company.

“Okay, so we got that mess sorted out.” Hongseok asked as he places his elbows on the table behind him, leaning back in a relaxed manner.

Hwitaek already sobered up and was fixing his shirt. “That part might be _partially_ sorted out. After all, we don’t have hard evidence even though it's very likely,” Hwitaek said, crossing his arms. “But the matter of the hostage isn’t. Where are you hiding Yanan?”

Hongseok sighed and ran his hand through his hair, smooth and mesmerizing. Jinho’s hands twitched at the motion. “Yanan? Who the fuck is that?”

Hwitaek remained silent, fixing Hongseok with an unreadable stare.

Hongseok huffed at the silent accusation. “Look, I don’t know a ‘Yanan’. And since we’ve established that we didn’t ambush each other, why are you blaming me for your loss? What could I possibly gain from taking one of your members?”

Hwitaek stayed stoic, his brown eyes taking in everything, from Hongseok’s exasperated expression to the expressions of his four other companions. Shinwon was looking bored, Yuto was as silent as ever, the short guy looked completely lost, and Kino was looking at the ordeal with furrowed eyebrows. Hwitaek changed his focus and stared at Kino. Hwitaek knew Kino couldn’t lie to him. He didn’t like using it for his wicked self-interests but drastic times call for drastic measures.

Kino met his gaze and sighed, shrugging his jacket a bit closer to himself.

“Hyung, I swear. We don’t know of any ‘Yanan’. The only new guy we have here is Jinho-hyung.” Kino said, reading Hwitaek’s unspoken question. It was almost pleading, the raw tone ringing in Jinho’s ears. It left him more curious about their history.

Hwitaek tasted Kino’s words in his mouth and finally, after some time, he swallowed. He knew deep inside that Hongseok wasn’t really the culprit but he had to make sure. If it wasn’t Hongseok, who else had the capability to break into their system and capture one of his most loyal members? Hwitaek rested his eyes on Hongseok once again.

 

Hongseok could only offer a ‘there you have it’ shrug. Hwitaek continued to look on.

“Well, if you still don’t believe me, I’m going to blame you on something outrageous as well. Did you set Takada’s men on us?” Hongseok fired back. At the mention of Takada, Hwitaek instantly perked up.

“Hiro Takada? Hell no! I don’t even want to look at him, much less strike a deal with him.” Hwitaek countered, the rage almost palpable from where Jinho was sitting.

“My point, exactly. I’ll never capture one of your own and you don’t even want to set your eyes on Takada’s balding head,” Hongseok squared up. “So for the last time, I didn’t take Yanan. For fuck’s sake I don’t even know the guy!”

Hwitaek just sighed and cracked his knuckles in frustration. Deep worry lines appeared on his face and he glanced to the brown-haired guy beside him.

“Where do you think he is, Changgu? This was our only lead.” Hwitaek said to ‘Changgu’, who just looked down in response.

Hongseok let out a thoughtful hum at the interaction before saying, **“** Why don’t we agree on something, here, Hwitaek?”

Hwitaek stared at Hongseok, partly confused and partly intrigued.

“Let’s strike a deal. Let me and my men help you track down this Yanan, we do have the capabilities for it after all, and you help me figure out what the hell is going on with Takada. And that way, we can settle this drugs bullshit that the police staked on us, easily proving that none of us attacked the other. Easily put: we’ll be killing a lot of birds with this one single stone.” Hongseok said, commanding the air around him again.

The other party looked at each other and after a minute, Hwitaek sighed. It was a swift decision, one that Hwitaek wanted to take because right now, the situation is still too unclear and it might be better to get more manpower on his side. Setting his posture straight, he nodded.

“Alright, I agree. This situation is getting out of control, what with the police and Takada getting involved. If we can get Yanan back, exact revenge on Takada, and sort things out with the police, then fine— you’ve got a deal.”

Hwitaek extended his arm and Hongseok met him. They both shook on it and Jinho had a feeling that with both the gangs entire member base as witness, it’s going to be a hard agreement to break. When they broke away, Jinho released a breath he didn’t know he was holding. Apparently, it was a very loud exhale as Hongseok turned to Jinho and smiled. He reached out to ruffle Jinho’s hair and Jinho frowned, reaching overhead to swat Hongseok’s hands away.

“What are you doing?” Jinho whispered sharply. Hongseok just shrugged in response and turned back to Hwitaek, who was watching them with curious eyes. Jinho huffed and feeling someone staring at him, turned to look at Kino. Kino was slightly blushing, his hand covering his mouth. It was apparent that he was hiding a big grin behind his hand. Jinho just groaned and covered his entire face.

“So,” Hwitaek started. “I guess it’s better we stick together. I suggest we make this area our base of operations. It was hard to track you guys down here and since Takada’s a dumbass—”

“Ah, no I don’t think he’s _that_ dumb—”

“He won’t be able to track us down here.” Hwitaek glared at Shinwon, who had interrupted him. Shinwon just looked away while whistling. Hongseok smirked and nodded.

“I agree that Takada’s not _that_ stupid but I think this is a wise move. We need more information on the situation and need to plan things out. Also, the more the merrier, am I right?” Hongseok chuckled and looked around. Obviously, not everyone agreed to his sentiment. Some people groaned while some reluctantly nodded their heads. It’s obvious to the members of both groups that the hostility had disappeared, which made the atmosphere in the bar-diner a bit lighter. Hongseok seemed too happy to Jinho, which made him wonder more about the reputation of Hwitaek’s gang. Was there some sort of power hierarchy in the ‘gang system’? Was Hwitaek just as crazy as Hongseok with the personality changes? Jinho knew Hwitaek was more than capable of going blindly into a situation, knives and guns out, but how was he as a leader underneath? Genuine and, dare he say it, _doting_ like Hongseok?

To Jinho’s surprise, Hwitaek smiled, his eyes crinkling at the sides. When Lee Hwitaek smiles, he becomes just another normal guy and Jinho internally sighs in relief. He was still very scared of the gangster and angry at his first encounter with him, but if there are spaces where he can relax around him, then it’s all good. He was used to the danger after all, but since it’s been too long, his heart has grown a bit weaker. It made him sad, somehow.

“Yeah, the more the merrier. Okay, since everything is all good and you guys turned out to be our allies, we can get a bit friendly now.” Hwitaek said with a lighter tone. Jinho took the change with a clear head, attributing it to the fact that maybe this kind of dual persona trend is common in the gang business or maybe even an essential part of being one.  He looked around and found that no one else looked shocked. Maybe it was normal and he was just being too sensitive about everything. He really doesn’t know.

An arm around his shoulders jolted him out of his thoughts. He looked to his right in surprise, only to find Lee Hwitaek. He froze and felt beads of sweat start to form on his forehead.

“Yo! Jinho- _hyung_ , right? Look, I didn’t mean what I said back there. I was blinded by my rage. Hope we’re okay now, yeah?” Jinho felt beads of sweat fall. His throat was suddenly dry and his finger started twitching. The arm around his shoulders felt like a chain, cool metal causing goosebumps across his skin, heavy and threatening. This was Lee Hwitaek, another gangster boss who seemed too different from Hongseok’s frivolous character. In fact Hwitaek seems more erratic than Hongseok. Their first encounter was not really great, as well.

“Woah, relax. We’re all good now, you can breathe.” Hwitaek pulled away and looked at the shorter man with a concerned expression. Jinho was trying to compose himself again, not wanting to make a scene. When he was finally able to look at Hwitaek in the eyes and get his normal breathing back, he suddenly felt a hand touch his forearm. Hwitaek looked at the man behind Jinho and smiled.

“Hui-hyung…” Kino said behind him and moved in front to bow to Hwitaek. Jinho looked on, getting even more curious.

“Hyunggu, there’s no need for that.” Hwitaek said in a rather fond voice, forcing Kino to straighten himself. “Things are going well here, I take it?”

“Yes, hyung.” Kino said in a serious tone, full of respect and admiration. Jinho has only heard that tone directed to Hongseok but now, Hwitaek seems to be the other one worthy of such an attitude.

“That’s great!” Hwitaek grinned and clasped his shoulder, making a move to walk away. “I really believe in you, Hyunggu. Always have and always will.” He said to Kino one last time before turning to Jinho.

“Oh, and you can call me ‘Hui’, Jinho. ‘Hwitaek’’s too long.” With that, Hui left with Changgu, the tall black-haired guy and the other blond following shortly.

Changgu smiled and offered a wave, the tall-black haired guy said a quick “‘Sup, the name’s Wooseok” while the blond smiled and said a quick introduction. “Hey, the name’s Hyojong but I go by the name E’dawn around these parts. Nice ‘ta meetcha!”

And just like that, they were gone.

Hui’s gang cleared out with Yuto and Shinwon, as commanded by Hongseok, to show them the way. Hongseok’s gang also left, just behind the other gang.

Jinho stayed back in the bar-diner with Kino and Hongseok. They were both talking to Louis, expressing their apologies and offering to pay for the damages. From what Jinho could see, Louis was being hesitant with Hongseok’s generosities but with Hongseok being Hongseok, he seemed to be insisting too much that Louis couldn’t even get a word in. It went on for a couple more minutes until, to Jinho’s surprise, Hongseok bowed. Jinho couldn’t stop his heart from skipping a beat. Even Kino seemed a bit flustered before he, too, bowed. It must be unusual to see someone of Hongseok’s caliber show such vulnerabilities so openly like that. But in this bar-diner, it was just him, Kino, and Louis. It was _human_ , and somehow Jinho wanted to take this moment and bottle it. To save as a reminder during the times where Hongseok was anything but. Just to remind Jinho, that deep down this leather-clad, cigarette-smoking, gun-wielding, big-headed yet ruthless prick of a gang leader, there was someone _warm, caring, vulnerable_ _—_ human.

Jinho was lost in his dizzying and confusing thoughts when a warm hand on his jaw brought him back to reality. He looked up to see Hongseok scanning his face. Jinho felt the hand move up and down his cheeks, over his eyelashes, and caressing his temple. Jinho swallowed unconsciously, Hongseok’s intense gaze pinning him down.

“That was a lot to take in, huh?” Hongseok asked, his hand now moving to card through Jinho’s hair. Jinho realize belatedly that Hongseok was comforting him. Had he been _that_ scared? Granted, it really was a lot to take in and Jinho hasn’t fully integrated himself into their world. _But if he’s not ready now, when will he ever be ready?_ He’s gotta step up his game.

Clenching his fists, he caught Hongseok’s gaze and offered a breezy smile. A facade, actually. “Nah, not really.”

Hongseok drew back his hand (Jinho had to stop himself from reaching out in protest) and laughed through his nose. “Sure, whatever you say.”

Jinho acted offended, going as far as to put his hand over his chest. “Hey! I handled it well, didn’t I, Kino?”

Kino, who was looking at the interaction in unabashed amusement, just grinned and shrugged, skipping away to exit the bar-diner. Jinho puffed and crossed his arms.

“But really, how are you holding up?” Jinho felt Hongseok’s breath on the back of his neck just as Kino disappeared from view. Hongseok was bending down, placing his hands around Jinho’s waist. He was whispering, as if he was afraid. Afraid of what, Jinho doesn’t know.

Jinho felt a lump appear in his throat and he tried to swallow it down. Kidding aside, Hongseok was asking a real question.

“I’m… I’m fine. Just a bit shaken but fine,” Jinho whispered back, lightly touching Hongseok’s hand in a soft reassuring motion. “Thank you, by the way.” _For stopping me from running my mouth, for the gun, for checking up on me_.

Hongseok took a deep breath and let go of his hold. Jinho turned to look at him, cheeks flaming at the intimacy of it all.

“No need to thank me. You would’ve gotten us all killed with your eloquent speech and terrifying temper.” He smirked and gave him a wink. Jinho glared at him, the red never leaving his cheeks. He didn’t appreciate the sarcasm at all.

With one last ruffle of Jinho’s hair and a laugh, Hongseok walked to the exit. Jinho followed him, still a bit peeved at Hongseok’s teasing.

 

~*~

 

When they arrived at the living room, Yuto, Shinwon, Kino, and Hui and his three other companions were there. They seemed to be having a lively conversation, with E’dawn leading.

“—and so this bastard takes out his gun, spits out his gum, and shoots the asshole straight between the—”

“Hey, boss!” Shinwon interrupted E’dawn, who deflated from being stopped when he was just getting to the climax of the story.

“I see you’re all getting a bit cozy in here.” Hongseok said, nodding at Hui who was sitting next to E’dawn. He changed from his silk shirt to a plain white shirt. He looked less scary but Jinho wasn’t really focusing on that but instead he zeroed in on Hui’s hand which was resting on E’dawn’s thigh. E’dawn didn’t look to bothered by it as far as Jinho could see. Maybe they’re an item. That’s cute.

“We’re comrades now, aren’t we? Might as well make our alliance worth the while.” Hui grinned at Hongseok and gave a small wave to Jinho. Hongseok grinned back and sat down in the nearest couch space. Jinho, who was the only one standing, wondered what he should do next.

“What are you doing? Come here.” Hongseok gave him his annoying smirk and gestured to his lap. Jinho stood frozen and wide-eyed. He stared at Hongseok, aware of the eyes of the other gangsters in the room on him. He was trying to figure out what Hongseok wanted, if he was just being the prick that he was or if he was being serious but he caught onto a play of light in Hongseok’s eyes and a twitch in his smile.

“Ha ha, not funny,” Jinho gave him a dry laugh and scratched the back of his neck. “Anyway, I’ll just… go and retire for the night…”

Jinho made a move to leave when Kino grabbed his wrist and pulled him down, forcing him to squeeze himself in between Kino and Yuto.

“Nice try, hyung but you can’t just leave yet.” Kino grinned at him. “Plus, our room arrangements will be different this time. You’ll be sharing a room with the boss!”

Jinho stared at Kino. What?

“What?” Kino just chuckled softly at his reaction.

“Well, we have to accommodate Hwitaek’s gang, don’t we?” Hongseok interjected while smirking and raising an eyebrow at Jinho. “Plus, the rooms are relatively smaller and could only hold two people at most. If anything, I’m doing you a favor. ”

Jinho mulled over his words, trying to come up with alternatives because certainly, he _didn’t_ have to share a room with Hongseok but his brain failed him. In defeat, he just stared at Hongseok blankly and nodded.

“Seems like he’s not too willing, Hongseok.” Hui said, releasing a loud laugh, catching on to Hongseok’s not-so-subtle advances.

Grinning, Hongseok replied, “You might be right there, Hwitaek. Guess I need to step up my game.”

“Ah, no it’s alright. You don’t have to ‘step up’ anything!” Jinho rushed to say while glaring at Hongseok, not really liking where the conversation was going. He didn’t want to be discussing things like this in front of the other members and he was slowly getting infuriated with Hongseok. “If anything, I’d like it if you could step down, instead. Though it might be hard with your large head.”

The other gang members went silent for a few seconds before bursting into laughter. Hui and Shinwon were guffawing like there was no tomorrow. Jinho smirked back at Hongseok and raised an eyebrow. That’ll teach the asshole a lesson for embarrassing him.

Undeterred by the commotion, Hongseok just smiled and shrugged. “Ah, that’s really not what you want, isn’t it? Like yesterday, when you pressed your mouth onto mine so aggressively and your legs were wrapped around my waist _oh-so_ tightly—”

“Okay, that’s it! Stop right there!” Jinho interrupted before Hongseok could say any more. Jinho felt his cheeks burn as the other gangsters started to whistle and laugh some more. Hongseok, the fucker, also started laughing. Everything annoyed Jinho but for some reason, he joined in and laughed. The high was very contagious and he couldn’t help himself. It’s weird to say this but somehow, Jinho found peace in all of this. Taken as an isolated occurrence, they were just boys laughing about stupid things— they weren’t gangsters, or people who were involved in shady businesses. It was both exhilarating and fun.

It took some time until they all quieted down. A few wheezing from E’dawn and Wooseok and then they settled into a pregnant silence once again, their situation crashing onto them like erratic waves onto a silent shore. Then, it was Kino who broke the silence.

“Hui-hyung, do you think… I mean, who… uh… So, this Yanan, dude?” Kino had a bit of trouble trying to phrase his question, having a bit of problem on how to talk about the ‘Yanan’ situation. Surprisingly, Jinho would like to believe, they all understood what Kino meant.

Hui took some time before he answered.

“Yanan was a dear friend of ours. I mean, everyone in the gang is a good friend but Yanan was the first few, coming in at the same time as Changgu, here,” The brown-haired guy beside Wooseok nodded. “He was loyal to a fault and proved time and time again that he was worthy of being in the gang, although he stumbled a bit at first. Now that I think about it, he came from quite a mysterious and troubled background. Was from China and then came here for greener pastures and the like.”

“He was a precious friend. And that’s why we have to get him back.” Changgu added with a look so fierce and determined that Jinho couldn’t help but feel the same. He doesn’t know Yanan but he felt Changgu’s determination.

“Don’t worry, Hwitaek. We’ll definitely help you.” Hongseok must have felt the same. This is an issue of camaraderie, of brothers with a special bond. When someone’s loses their way or when you lose someone, you have to get them back on track or find them.

In the silence of the living room and the dim wash of the lights, Hwitaek cracked a genuine smile. It looked tired yet hopeful and then and there, Jinho felt his blood rush. This was what it feels like to be part of something like brotherhood and friendship and oh, how he had missed this.

“Thank you, Hongseok. I appreciate this, I really do.”

 

-~-

 

After that honest declaration from Hui, everyone decided to go and retire for the night. Jinho dreaded this because, one, he’ll be alone in a room with Hongseok, and two, he’ll be _alone_ in a room _with_ Hongseok!

When everyone split up near the stairs, Jinho caught Kino’s eye. Kino was giggling and covering his cheeks. Jinho glared at him and tried to stop his own blush from forming. Jinho walked behind Hongseok, silently and stoically. He didn’t know what to do, how to react, what to say and when they finally arrived at their room, he didn’t know how to move. It’s like he had forgotten how to be a functioning human being.

Hongseok, who had walked into the room as if this arrangement wasn’t anything new to him, looked back when he didn’t hear the door close after him. He grinned at Jinho, who was slightly fidgeting near the doorway and stalked closer to him.

“Hi.” Hongseok said in a nonchalant yet teasing voice.

Jinho swallowed and replied with a small ‘hey’.

Hongseok cocked his head to the side and grinned. “Aren’t you coming in?”

“Y-yeah,” Jinho laughed nervously and scratched the back of his neck. “I’m just...admiring the frame of this doorway. It’s so...elegant.”

Hongseok stared at him for a moment before sighing and running his hand through his hair.

“Look, Jinho. You can go stay with Kino and Yuto if you want. I’m not going to force you to do anything you don’t want to do. I just thought… that you’d be fine with all of this after our—”

“Sorry!” Jinho blurted out and Hongseok blinked at him. Jinho cleared his throat. “Yeah, I was just… nervous, is all. It’s just… It’s been a long time.”

With that, Jinho smiled up at him still a bit nervous.

“You do know that we’re just going to sleep and not _sleep_ , right?” Hongseok inquired, his eyebrow raised. “I’m not asking for anything, Jinho.”

“Yeah, of course I know that, you perv!” Jinho glared at him and calmed himself down. “It’s this whole romantic thingy that I’m nervous about. Good god, Hongseok.”

Hongseok was silent for a while before he broke out into little chuckles. “Oh, okay! I’m glad, then.”

Jinho stared at Hongseok inquisitively and watched him as he moved closer with a warm smile on his face. “I know I haven’t known you for a long time and the circumstances of how we met really wasn’t...ideal, to say the least, but I can’t help but want to try. I’m attracted to you, there’s no doubt about that, and I admire you for your bravery. I like you. And I guess, I want to know you? Shit, I didn’t really think this whole confession through and it’s been a long time since I felt this way too— fuck. I’m fucking this up, aren’t I?”

Hongseok wasn’t looking at him and Jinho was left with his mouth wide open, in shock and at a loss on what to do. Were they moving too fast? I mean, this wasn’t a confession per se but some sort of declaration to a start of something? Hell, he doesn’t know. For sure, they both don’t know what they’re doing and somehow that revelation drove Jinho to act.

Without thinking any deeper, and without any warning, Jinho grabbed the front of Hongseok’s shirt and pulled him down for a searing kiss. Jinho’s mind was devoid of any thoughts except thoughts of wanting Hongseok. He wanted to taste his full lips, feel his warm sun-kissed skin, and run his fingers through his luscious locks. Hongseok let out a grunt when Jinho grabbed his shirt but quickly accepted Jinho’s kiss as if it was second nature.

Right now, they both weren’t thinking but just feeling the moment. Feeling each other, their tongues exploring and their hands tracing the outlines of every curve and every line. It was getting a bit hot but Jinho couldn’t care less. He was still sucking on Hongseok’s upper lip, taking it in between his teeth, eliciting a moan from Hongseok. Meanwhile, Hongseok was lifting Jinho up again, grateful for Jinho’s small build, guiding Jinho’s legs to tighten around his hips. And then, they were moving. Hongseok, with a grunt and push of a hand, closed the door behind them and laid Jinho down on the bed, careful of his head and of not breaking the contact between them.

As Jinho felt the sheets touch his back, he circled his arms around Hongseok’s neck, pulling him down and closer to his body. They were as connected as they could get and Jinho was intoxicated, delirious, and burning. When Hongseok moved down to his neck and sucked, Jinho pushed him away slightly to grab at his shirt.

“This has to go.” He said, his voice husky and out of breath. Hongseok felt his arousal flare, hearing Jinho’s deep voice and seeing Jinho’s red face, puckered lips, and sweaty form. Hongseok was so enamored, so captivated but he stopped himself. Self-control. That’s what they both wanted, after all.

“Jinho,” Hongseok warned, his hands going to Jinho’s forehead to wipe the sweat and cool his head by brushing across his hair. “One step at a time, okay?”

“Yeah, I know, I know.” Jinho was impatient but through his delirium, he was thankful. But he still wanted more. He was impatient damnit! “Just kissing. Just kissing. Now, Hongseok, take the damn shirt off.”

Hongseok chuckled lowly at Jinho and was happy at Jinho’s level-headedness. God, how he wanted him.

As soon as his shirt was off, Jinho latched onto him, sucking on his neck and nipping at his collarbones. Jinho had always admired Hongseok’s body and dear lord, was it the finest piece of art he has ever seen in his life.

“God, Hongseok. You’re so _hot_.” Jinho blamed his stupid brain and mouth because he fucking slipped. Hongseok raised his head from where he was showering Jinho’s neck with kisses and stared at Jinho. The look was hungry, near primal and it shot a wave of fire down Jinho’s spine.

“Well, I’m not the only one.” Hongseok replied and Jinho almost exploded right then and there. Jinho almost let out a squeal he most certainly wouldn’t be able to contain when Hongseok took his mouth. It was as hungry and as passionate as ever, with Hongseok sucking on his teeth and tongue, trying to take in as much of Jinho as he possibly can. They were back to their tongue twisting competition and Jinho grabbed a bunch of Hongseok’s hair again. They were gasping, moaning, and grinding against one another with so much passionate energy until finally, after quite some time, they began to relax. From a great shower, it had quieted down to a drizzle. Pecks, nuzzling, and caresses. Then they lay together, facing each other with content smiles on their faces.

“Hey.” Hongseok whispered, still looking delicious with his hair all over the place, his cheeks slightly flushed and his lips red.

“Hi.” Jinho whispered back, looking every bit as disheveled as Hongseok.

“So,” Hongseok started, reaching up to brush a few stray locks away from Jinho’s eyes. “Are you up for it? For this?”

“You’ve been making an awful lot of deals recently, Hongseok,” Jinho chuckled.

“Oh, you’re right,” Hongseok laughed. “But, are you fine with this? I mean, we’ll just try. No labels or anything yet. Just us. Trying.”

Jinho took a deep breath and exhaled. “Yes, I’m fine with this. Though, we kind of live in two different worlds, don’t we? How are we going to reconcile everything...?”

Hongseok thought about it for a moment until he finally didn’t. “You know, what? No promises just yet. We’ll just try to see how everything goes, with this gang problem and beyond that. One step at a time, yeah?”

“I can see that you’re tired of thinking,” Jinho laughed and then smiled. “It’s fine with me. I’m also tired of thinking. Let’s just go with the flow for now, I guess.”

Hongseok smiled and stretched his body. Jinho couldn’t help but stare at his sculpted body. “Great! How about we take a bath and then sleep? Of course, separately!”

Jinho laughed at his cautious actions and nodded.    


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [UNEDITED] 
> 
> So sorry again guys. I'm on my last year of school so it's been taking a huge toll on me, emotionally and physically and although writing is my escape, it's quite hard to find time. :( haha anyway, I hope I made it up to you guys? 
> 
> [shameless plug] Also, if you haven't yet, please read my recent fic "Swim Good"! 
> 
> (( Also, with E'dawn not in Pentagon anymore (?), I still believe Pentagon is 10 so keep that in mind for all my updates. :D *fandom hug* )) ((& don't forget to follow me on twt @jojijiri if u want to chat or see previews lmao))
> 
> Hope you enjoyed this! 'Til next time! :D


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